Cardiorespiratory Fitness Cut-Points are Related to Body Adiposity Parameters in Latin American Adolescents.

Daniel Humberto Prieto-Benavides,Alicia María Alonso-Martínez,Mikel Izquierdo,César Agostinis-Sobrinho,Antonio García-Hermoso,Jorge Enrique Correa-Bautista,Robinson Ramírez-Vélez

doi:10.3390/medicina55090508

Abstract

Background and Objectives: A deficiency exists in the criterion-referenced cut-points for field-based cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) in Latin American youths. The aims of the present study were two-fold: (1) To identify the ability of CRF estimated by the 20-m shuttle-run test (20mSRT) to differentiate between “healthy” and “unhealthy” phenotypes (by adiposity) in adolescents; (2) to assess the association between obesity and relative peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak) in a large and diverse sample of Latin American youths. In total, 72,505 adolescents aged between 13 and 15 years were recruited from Chile and Colombia (47.5% girls). Materials and Methods: The waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were used to identify body adiposity markers. CRF was measured using the 20mSRT (VO2peak). Receiver operating characteristic curves and logistic regression were used to determine the discriminatory ability of CRF to predict body adiposity parameters. Results: For boys and girls, VO2peak showed a significant predictive capacity to detect body fat (area under the curve [AUC] > 0.62). The sensitivity of VO2peak was medium (>63%) for all age- and sex-specific cut-points, with optimal cut-points in 13- to 15-year olds for obesity identified as 43.77 mL·kg−1·min−1 and 38.53 mL·kg−1·min−1 in boys and girls, respectively. Conclusions: According to these cut-points, adolescents with low CRF were more likely to be obese either by WC or WHtR. The CRF cut-points can be used as quantitative markers for a healthier body in Latin American adolescents.

Highlights

Physical inactivity and low levels of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) are major threats to public health
The prevalence of body adiposity parameters according to waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were 11.2% and 15.1%, respectively (Table 1)
The main findings of the present study suggest that CRF presented discriminatory ability in identifying a poor health profile in both girls and boys aged 13–15 years

Summary

Introduction

Physical inactivity and low levels of CRF are major threats to public health. their prevalence is rapidly increasing in developing countries, such as among Latin American children and adolescents [1,2].overweight and obese children are likely to stay obese into adulthood and are more likely to develop several metabolic risks at a younger age [3]. Physical inactivity and low levels of CRF are major threats to public health Their prevalence is rapidly increasing in developing countries, such as among Latin American children and adolescents [1,2]. An important body of evidence supports an unequivocal association between poor CRF and excess adiposity with an increased risk for cardio-metabolic disease in youths [6]. The aims of the present study were two-fold: (1) To identify the ability of CRF estimated by the 20-m shuttle-run test (20mSRT) to differentiate between “healthy” and “unhealthy” phenotypes (by adiposity) in adolescents; (2) to assess the association between obesity and relative peak oxygen uptake (VO2 peak) in a large and diverse sample of Latin American youths. The CRF cut-points can be used as quantitative markers for a healthier body in Latin American adolescents

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion