Effect Of Simple Obesity On Cardiovascular Diseases And Analysis Of Obesity-related Risk Factors In Children

Part OneEpidemiological investigation of obesity and assessment of risk factors in children aged 6~14 years in Xuhui district, Shanghai Objective To investigate the prevalence of obesity in children aged 6~14 years in one of local districts in Shanghai, to evaluate risk factors associated with childhood obesity. Methods With cluster sampling, 5425 children aged 6~14 years were selected randomly, measurement of height and weight was taken to calculate body mass index, standard structured questionnaire was used to investigate children's eating habits, physical exercise habits, familial cardiovascular disease history and mothers` eating behavior. A child was defined as being obese or overweight according to a standard definition for child overweight and obesity based on an international survey of six large nationally representative cross sectional growth studies(BMI cutoff values of International Obesity Task Force). Results On average, the prevalence of obesity was 5.5%(7.8% in male, 3.2% in female), with prevalence of overweight 8.6%(22.9% in male, 14.6% in female). The prevalence of obesity was higher in younger children than in older children. Obesity was correlated with excess eating, lack of physical activity, obese parents, born weight and mother's eating behavior. Conclusion the prevalence of overweight is higher in children aged 6~14 years old, and tends to increase gradually. Excess eating and lack of physical activity are main causes of obesity. Mother's eating behavior has a significant impact on child obesity. The probability of obesity in children may increase in the presence of obesity in the child's parents. Part Two Assessment of high risk factors for cardiovascular diseases in obese childrenâ…  Biochemical examinationObjective To investigate the profile of plasma lipid, lipoprotein, glucose and insulin to explore high risk factors of cardiovascular diseases in children with simple obesity. Methods The study group consisted of 255 simple obese children. Control group consisted of 145 healthy children. Glucose, insulin, triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoprotein A-I and B levels were measured. Results The level of insulin, triglyceride, low density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein B were significantly higher in obesity group than in control group. The ratio of insulin to glucose and LDL to HDL was significantly higher in obesity group than in control group. The ratio of apolipoprotein A-I to B was significantly lower in obese children than in controls. Conclusion Simple obese children present significant insulin resistance and disturbances in lipid metabolism, manifested by increased serum triglyceride, low density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein B. Unfavourable lipid metabolism and insulin resistance may be high risk factors for atherosclerosis.â…¡ Evaluation of single nucleotide polymorphisms oflipoprotein lipase gene in simple obese childrenObjective This study inquired into the relationship between lipoprotein lipase (LPL) gene D9N, N291S and S447X polymorphisms and risk factors of cardiovascular disease in obese children. Methods The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism(RLFP) techniques were used to detect the three common mutation of LPL gene exon D9N N291S and S447X in 157 obese children and 175 normal controls. The levels of the plasma lipid and lipoprotein were also measured. Results The D9N and N291S gene mutation were not detected in two groups. There was no significant difference in the frequency of S447 gene mutation between obese group and control group. There is no significant difference in the levels of the plasma lipid and lipoprotein between children with S447 genotype and children with X447 genotype. Conclusion The frequency of D9N and N291S gene mutation is low in Chinese children. It is possible that S447X gene mutation does not play an important role in the development o...