Relation of percentage of body fat and maximal aerobic capacity to risk factors for atherosclerosis and diabetes in black and white seven- to eleven-year-old children,☆☆,,★★

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Abstract

Objective: To determine whether body fatness, aerobic capacity, and fat distribution are associated with levels of cardiovascular risk factors in children. Methods: Subjects (N = 57) were 7 to 11 years of age; their percentage of body fat ranged from 10% to 58%. The percentage of fat was measured with dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry, maximal aerobic capacity was measured on a tread-mill, fat distribution was expressed as the waist/hip circumference ratio, and blood pressures were measured with an automated monitor. Measurements of several lipoproteins and apoproteins were combined into one atherogenic index. Results: The percentage of fat was related to the atherogenic index (ρ = 0.38; p >0.01) and insulin level (ρ = 0.78; p >0.001). Aerobic capacity was inversely related to the atherogenic index (ρ = -0.27; p >0.05) and insulin level (ρ = -0.72; p >0.001). The waist/hip ratio was not related to the risk factors, and blood pressures were not related to fatness or aerobic capacity. In multiple regression analyses, only fatness explained significant independent proportions of the variance in the atherogenic index and insulin level. After control for fatness, the black children had higher insulin levels (p >0.05). Conclusion: At early ages (7- to 11-year-old children), fatness was related to risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. (J PEDIATR 1994;125:847-52)

Section snippets

METHODS

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Subjects

Complete data were obtained for 57 children 7 to 11 years of age, with a wide range of fatness. Ethnicity was determined by self-designation by the parents. All children and their parents gave informed consent in accordance with procedures of the Medical College of Georgia Human Assurance Committee.

Subjects reported to the laboratory in a fasting state at 8 AM and a blood sample was drawn. The blood constituents measured (as described below) were those associated with CAD and NIDDM, and were

RESULTS

Table I shows the descriptive statistics for the subgroups and total sample. Table II shows that the percentage of body fat was inversely correlated with peak V̇O2, and was positively correlated with the atherogenic index and triglyceride levels. The most striking finding was the magnitude of the correlation between percentage of body fat and insulin. The Figure shows that insulin values appeared to increase especially sharply in some children at a fatness level of about 35%. The percentage of

DISCUSSION

The main conclusion from this study is that the DEXA-derived measurement of body fatness is correlated with risk factors for CAD and NIDDM. Our correlations of fatness to the lipid levels are consistent in direction, but greater in magnitude, than those of other studies that used skin folds to measure fatness (e.g., references 9, 19, and 20). The strength of the correlations is probably related to the large number of obese children in our sample. The relations between fatness and risk factors

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    From the Department of Pediatrics, Georgia Prevention Institute, and the Department of Medicine, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta.

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    Supported in part by the Medical College of Georgia Research Institute and Department of Pediatrics, and by the American Heart Association-Georgia affiliate.

    Reprint requests: Bernard Gutin, PhD, Professor of Pediatrics and Physiology, Georgia Prevention Institute, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA 30912-3710.

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    0022-3476/94/$3.00 + 0 9/20/59061

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