Abstract
ObjectiveChildhood and adolescent overweight, defined by body mass index (BMI) are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in later life. Abdominal adiposity may be more important in associations with cardiovascular diseases but waist circumference (WC) has been rarely studied in children. We studied associations between BMI and WC and blood pressure (BP) and cholesterol in 12-year-old children and prospectively changes in BMI or WC status between age 8 and 12 years and BP and cholesterol at age 12.Study DesignWeight, height, WC, BP and cholesterol concentrations were measured in 1432 children at age 12 years. Linear regression was used to study the associations between high BMI and large WC (>90th percentile) and BP and cholesterol.ResultsSystolic BP was 4.9 mmHg higher (95% (CI 2.5, 7.2) in girls and 4.2 mmHg (95%CI 1.9, 6.5) in boys with a high BMI. Large WC was also associated with higher systolic BP in girls (3.7 mmHg (95%CI 1.3, 6.1)) and boys (3.5 mmHg (95%CI 1.2, 5.8)). Diastolic BP and cholesterol concentrations were significantly positively (HDL cholesterol negatively) associated with high BMI and large WC, too. Normal weight children with a history of overweight did not have higher blood pressure levels or adverse cholesterol concentrations than children that were normal weight at both ages.ConclusionA high BMI and large WC were associated with higher BP levels and adverse cholesterol concentrations. WC should be taken into account when examining cardiovascular risk factors in children.
Highlights
Overweight during childhood increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases later in life [1,2,3,4]
Large waist circumference (WC) was associated with higher systolic blood pressure (BP) in girls (3.7 mmHg (95%CI 1.3, 6.1)) and boys (3.5 mmHg (95%CI 1.2, 5.8))
A high body mass index (BMI) and large WC were associated with higher BP levels and adverse cholesterol concentrations
Summary
Overweight during childhood increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases later in life [1,2,3,4]. This is probably due to the tracking of childhood and adolescent obesity into adulthood [5]. Already in children, overweight is associated with higher blood pressure (BP) levels and adverse cholesterol concentrations [6,7,8,9,10,11,12]. We examined the association between high BMI and large WC on one hand and BP and cholesterol concentrations on the other hand in 12-year-old children. We studied BP and cholesterol at age 12 years in children who lost, gained or maintained a high BMI or large WC between the ages of 8 and 12 years as compared to children with normal BMI or WC at both ages
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