High Childhood BMI Linked to Teen Heart Disease Risk

Children with a high body mass index – BMI, between 9 and 12 years old, have a bigger risk of developing high blood pressure and insulin levels, as well as high cholesterol – all the characteristics of heart disease, by the time they become teenagers.

The scientists who reached this conclusion are part of a team from the University of Bristol, and they also say that if the children manage to lose the extra weight before their adolescence, their risks are lower compared to children who stay overweight.

The study included 5,235 children, part of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), and was led by Professor Debbie Lawlor from Bristol’s School of Social and Community Medicine.

The team measured the kids' BMI, their waist circumference and their fat mass, between nine and twelve years of age.

When the children reached 15-16 years of age, their blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose and insulin levels were assessed.

The results of the study concluded that a high BMI in childhood is strongly related to heart disease factors at adolescence.

On the other hand, waist circumference and fat mass values, were not lined to heart disease during adolescence, any more that BMI was.

The researchers are optimistic and say that overweight children who get to a normal weight by the time they reach adolescence, lower their risks of heart disease.

Still they warn that “our findings highlight the need to shift the whole childhood population distribution of adiposity downwards and to develop interventions that safely and effectively reduce weight and improve cardiovascular risk factors in overweight/obese children.”

The link between childhood or adolescent obesity and heart disease later in life is nothing new, but this is actually the first study that examines the link between BMI, fat mass and waist circumference at age 9-12, and heart disease risk at age 15-16.

The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) tracked the health of more than 14,000 children since birth.

This new research was published on bmj.com.