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Associations of muscular and cardiorespiratory fitness with total and central body fat in adolescents: The HELENA Study
  1. D Moliner-Urdiales1,2,
  2. J R Ruiz2,
  3. G Vicente-Rodriguez1,3,
  4. F B Ortega2,4,
  5. J P Rey-Lopez1,
  6. V España-Romero2,4,
  7. J A Casajús1,3,
  8. D Molnar5,
  9. K Widhalm6,
  10. J Dallongeville7,
  11. M González-Gross8,
  12. M J Castillo4,
  13. M Sjöström2,
  14. L A Moreno1,9
  15. on behalf of the HELENA Study Group*
  1. 1Growth, Exercise, NUtrition, and Development (GENUD) Research Group, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
  2. 2Unit for Preventive Nutrition, Department of Biosciences and Nutrition at NOVUM, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
  3. 3Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud y del Deporte, Universidad de Zaragoza, Huesca, Spain
  4. 4Department of Medical Physiology, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
  5. 5Department of Paediatrics, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary
  6. 6Division of Clinical Nutrition and Prevention, Department of Pediatrics, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
  7. 7Département d'Eépidémiologie et Santé Publique, Unité INSERM 744, Institut Pasteur de Lille, Lille, France
  8. 8Department of Health and Human Performance, Facultad de Ciencias de la Actividad Física y del Deporte-INEF, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
  9. 9Escuela Universitaria de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
  1. Correspondence to Diego Moliner-Urdiales, GENUD Research Group, Universidad de Zaragoza, Corona de Aragón 42, 2nd floor, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain; dmoliner{at}unizar.es

Abstract

Objective To examine the association of healthrelated physical fitness with total and central body fat in adolescents.

Participants/Methods The present cross-sectional study comprises 363 Spanish adolescents (186 female participants) aged 12.5–17.5 years. We assessed fitness by the 20-m shuttle run test (cardiorespiratory fitness); the handgrip strength, the standing broad jump and the Abalakov tests (muscular strength); and the 4×10-m shuttle run test (speed–agility). Total body fat was measured by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), BodPod and sum of six skinfolds, and central body fat was measured by DXA at three regions (R1, R2 and R3) and waist circumference.

Results The Abalakov, the standing broad jump, the 4×10-m shuttle run and the 20-m shuttle run tests were negatively associated with all markers of total and central body fat in men and women after controlling for age, pubertal status and objectively assessed physical activity (p<0.01). Handgrip strength test was positively associated with waist circumference (p<0.01).

Conclusions Lower body muscular strength and cardiorespiratory fitness are negatively and consistently associated with total and central body fat in adolescents, whereas levels of upper body muscular strength were superior in adolescents with higher levels of central body fat.

https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsm.2009.062430

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    Footnotes

    • Competing interests None.

    • Ethics approval This study was conducted with the approval of the Research Ethics Committee of the Government of Aragón (CEICA; Spain).

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

    • Patient consent Obtained.

    • ↵HELENA Study Group Note: The content of this paper reflects only the authors' views and the rest of HELENA study members are not responsible for it.

      Co-ordinator: Luis A. Moreno.

      Core Group members: Luis A. Moreno, Fréderic Gottrand, Stefaan De Henauw, Marcela González-Gross, Chantal Gilbert.

      Steering Committee: Anthony Kafatos (President), Luis A. Moreno, Christian Libersa, Stefaan De Henauw, Jackie Sánchez, Fréderic Gottrand, Mathilde Kersting, Michael Sjöstrom, Dénes Molnár, Marcela González-Gross, Jean Dallongeville, Chantal Gilbert, Gunnar Hall, Lea Maes, Luca Scalfi.

      Project Manager: Pilar Meléndez.

      1. Universidad de Zaragoza (Spain)

        Luis A. Moreno, Jesús Fleta, José A. Casajús, Gerardo Rodríguez, Concepción Tomás, María I. Mesana, Germán Vicente-Rodríguez, Adoración Villarroya, Carlos M. Gil, Ignacio Ara, Juan Revenga, Carmen Lachen, Juan Fernández Alvira, Gloria Bueno, Aurora Lázaro, Olga Bueno, Juan F. León, Jesús Ma Garagorri, Manuel Bueno, Juan Pablo Rey López, Iris Iglesia, Paula Velasco, Silvia Bel.

      2. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (Spain)

        Ascensión Marcos, Julia Wärnberg, Esther Nova, Sonia Gómez, Esperanza Ligia Díaz, Javier Romeo, Ana Veses, Mari Angeles Puertollano, Belén Zapatera, Tamara Pozo.

      3. Université de Lille 2 (France)

        Laurent Beghin, Christian Libersa, Frédéric Gottrand, Catalina Iliescu, Juliana Von Berlepsch.

      4. Research Institute of Child Nutrition Dortmund, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn (Germany)

        Mathilde Kersting, Wolfgang Sichert-Hellert, Ellen Koeppen.

      5. Pécsi Tudományegyetem (University of Pécs) (Hungary)

        Dénes Molnar, Eva Erhardt, Katalin Csernus, Katalin Török, Szilvia Bokor, Mrs. Angster, Enikö Nagy, Orsolya Kovács, Judit Répasi.

      6. University of Crete School of Medicine (Greece)

        Anthony Kafatos, Caroline Codrington, María Plada, Angeliki Papadaki, Katerina Sarri, Anna Viskadourou, Christos Hatzis, Michael Kiriakakis, George Tsibinos, Constantine Vardavas Manolis Sbokos, Eva Protoyeraki, Maria Fasoulaki.

      7. Institut für Ernährungs- und Lebensmittelwissenschaften–Ernährungphysiologie. Rheinische Friedrich Wilhelms Universität (Germany)

        Peter Stehle, Klaus Pietrzik, Marcela González-Gross, Christina Breidenassel, Andre Spinneker, Jasmin Al-Tahan, Miriam Segoviano, Anke Berchtold, Christine Bierschbach, Erika Blatzheim, Adelheid Schuch, Petra Pickert.

      8. University of Granada (Spain)

        Manuel J. Castillo Garzón, Ángel Gutiérrez Sáinz, Francisco B. Ortega Porcel, Jonatan R Ruiz, Enrique García Artero, Vanesa España Romero, David Jiménez Pavón, Cristóbal Sánchez Muñoz, Victor Soto, Palma Chillón, Jose M. Heredia, Virginia Aparicio, Pedro Baena, Claudia M. Cardia, Ana Carbonell.

      9. Istituto Nazionalen di Ricerca per gli Alimenti e la Nutrizione (Italy)

        Davide Arcella, Giovina Catasta, Laura Censi, Donatella Ciarapica, Marika Ferrari, Cinzia Le Donne, Catherine Leclerq, Luciana Magrì, Giuseppe Maiani, Rafaela Piccinelli, Angela Polito, Raffaela Spada, Elisabetta Toti.

      10. University of Napoli “Federico II” Dept of Food Science (Italy)

        Luca Scalfi, Paola Vitaglione, Concetta Montagnese.

      11. Ghent University (Belgium)

        Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij, Stefaan De Henauw, Tineke De Vriendt, Lea Maes, Christophe Matthys, Carine Vereecken, Mieke de Maeyer, Charlene Ottevaere

      12. Medical University of Vienna (Austria)

        Kurt Widhalm, Katharina Phillipp, Sabine Dietrich, Birgit Kubelka Marion Boriss-Riedl.

      13. Harokopio University (Greece)

        Yannis Manios, Eva Grammatikaki, Zoi Bouloubasi, Tina Louisa Cook, Sofia Eleutheriou, Orsalia Consta, George Moschonis, Ioanna Katsaroli, George Kraniou, Stalo Papoutsou, Despoina Keke, Ioanna Petraki, Elena Bellou, Sofia Tanagra, Kostalenia Kallianoti, Dionysia Argyropoulou, Katerina Kondaki, Stamatoula Tsikrika, Christos Karaiskos.

      14. Institut Pasteur de Lille (France)

        Jean Dallongeville, Aline Meirhaeghe, Szilvia Bokor, Nathalie Fievet, Louisa Goumidi.

      15. Karolinska Institutet (Sweden)

        Michael Sjöstrom, Patrick Bergman, María Hagströmer, Lena Hallström, Mårten Hallberg, Eric Poortvliet, Julia Wärnberg, Nico Rizzo, Linda Beckman, Anita Hurtig Wennlöf, Emma Patterson, Lydia Kwak, Lars Cernerud, Per Tillgren, Stefaan Särensen.

      16. Asociación de Investigación de la Industria Agroalimentaria (Spain)

        Jackie Sánchez-Molero, Elena Picó, Maite Navarro, Blanca Viadel, José Enrique Carreres, Gema Merino, Rosa Sanjuán, María Lorente, María José Sánchez, Sara Castellá.

      17. Campden & Chorleywood Food Research Association (United Kingdom)

        Chantal Gilbert, Sarah Thomas, Elaine Allchurch, Peter Burguess.

      18. SIK – Institutet foer Livsmedel och Bioteknik (Sweden)

        Gunnar Hall, Annika Astrom, Anna Sverkén, Agneta Broberg.

      19. Meurice Recherche & Development asbl (Belgium)

        Annick Masson, Claire Lehoux, Pascal Brabant, Philippe Pate, Laurence Fontaine.

      20. Campden & Chorleywood Food Development Institute (Hungary)

        Andras Sebok, Tunde Kuti, Adrienn Hegyi.

      21. Productos Aditivos SA (Spain)

        Cristina Maldonado, Ana Llorente.

      22. Cárnicas Serrano SL (Spain)

        Emilio García.

      23. Cederroth International AB (Sweden)

        Holger von Fircks, Marianne Lilja Hallberg, Maria Messerer.

      24. Lantmännen Food R&D (Sweden)

        Mats Larsson, Helena Fredriksson, Viola Adamsson, Ingmar Börjesson.

      25. European Food Information Council (Belgium)

        Laura Fernández, Laura Smillie, Josephine Wills.

      26. Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain)

        Marcela González-Gross, Agustín Meléndez, Pedro J. Benito, Javier Calderón, David Jiménez-Pavón, Jara Valtueña, Paloma Navarro, Alejandro Urzanqui, Ulrike Albers, Raquel Pedrero, Juan José Gómez Lorente.