The incidence of some components of the metabolic syndrome in children in medium sized town and rural area in Poland

Abstract

Introduction. The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence of chosen components of the meta­bolic syndrome in Caucasian children and adolescents living in small town and rural area in central Poland. The parents’ knowledge on eating habits and level of physical activity of their children was also analyzed. Material and methods. We measured anthropometric parameters, fasting blood glucose, systolic and dias­tolic blood pressures in 842 school children aged 7 to 16 years. Questionnaire was used to assess the parents’ knowledge about the eating habits and physical activ­ity of the children. Results. In studied populations the prevalence of obe­sity was higher in boys than in girls. Blood pressure ≥ c95 was observed significantly more often in obese individuals. There was a positive correlation between obesity and abdominal obesity. Increased waist circum­ference was observed more frequently in boys in the youngest age group. Elevated blood pressure was most frequently seen in children with abdominal obesity. Adolescents aged 16 years spent the most time in front of the TV/computer, and those most often consumed “fast foods” meals. Both in small town and rural areas girls were less physically active than boys. Over 50% of parents in both populations regarded the physical activity of children as normal, and almost 90% of the parents accepted children’s dietary habits. Conclusions. Our results point out the key role of envi­ronmental factors and gender in the development of overweight and obesity. It seems necessary to take all preventive measures to reduce the risk of complica­tions of obesity in the future life. (Clin Diabetol 2017; 6, 6: 195–203)