Plasma levels of adiponectin and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in children with obesity / 中国当代儿科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To examine plasma adiponectin (ADPN) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) levels and their correlation in children with obesity in order to investigate the roles of both in the development of childhood obesity.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and forty-seven children with obesity and 118 normal children who were randomly sampled from five primary schools from the Kaifu District in Changsha were enrolled. Physical shape indexes, including height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, and waist to hip ratio (WHR) were measured. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Blood pressure was measured. Percentage of body fat (%BF) was measured with dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. Plasmal levels of ADPN and TNF-alpha were detected using ABC-ELISA. Blood concentrations of triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) were measured by automatic biochemistry analyzer. Fasting blood glucose level was measured by glucose oxidase method. Fasting blood insulin level was assayed by radioimmunity. Homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) was performed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Plasma ADPN levels in obese children significantly decreased compared with those in normal children (8.12+/-2.54 mg/L vs 12.22+/-4.68 mg/L; p<0.05), and had a negative correlation with plasma TNF-alpha levels, BMI, WHR and HOMA-IR (p<0.01), and with %BF, fasting insulin, systolic blood pressure and TG (p<0.05). Plasma TNF-alpha levels in obese children significantly increased compared to normal children (171.38+/-34.33 ng/L vs 91.07+/-21.60 ng/L; p<0.01) and positively correlated with BMI, WHR, %BF, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, TG and systolic blood pressure (p<0.01), and negatively with HDL (p<0.05). Multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that ADPN, BMI and TNF-alpha were main influential factors for %BF (R2=0.926, p<0.01). There was a significant interaction between ADPN and TNF-alpha (p<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Plasma ADPN levels decreased and plasma TNF-alpha levels increased in children with obesity and both were main influential factors for %BF in children. There was an interaction between ADPN and TNF-alpha, suggesting that they both participate in the development of childhood obesity.</p>

Serum leptin level and its association with bone mineral density in obese children / 中国当代儿科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate serum leptin level and its relationship with bone mineral density in obese children from Changsha City.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and nineteen obese children and 103 normal children aged 7 to 12 years from five primary schools of Changsha City were enrolled. Obesity was assessed based on the body mass index (BMI). Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) was used to determine bone mineral density (BMD) and body composition. Serum leptin level was measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The obesity group had higher height, weight, BMI, waist circumference and waist to hip ratio (WHR) compared with the normal group (p<0.01). BMD, bone mineral content (BMC), lean mass (LM), fat mass (FM), percentage of body fat (%BF) and leptin concentration in the obesity group were significantly higher than those in the normal group (p<0.01). Serum leptin level was positively correlated with BMD, BMC, LM and FM (r=0.528-0.903, p<0.01). Multiple stepwise regression analysis indicated that BMI and %BF were independent influencing factors for serum leptin level.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Obese children have higher serum leptin level. Serum leptin concentration is significantly correlated with BMD and body composition. BMI and %BF are independent influencing factors for serum leptin level in children.</p>

Obesity and its influencing factors in primary school students from Kaifu District of Changsha City / 中国当代儿科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the prevalence of obesity and the influencing factors for obesity in primary school students from Kaifu District of Changsha City.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 4 140 students aged 7 to 12 years sampled randomly from Kaifu District of Changsha City were enrolled. Obesity was identified based on the body mass index (BMI). The influencing factors for obesity were investigated by non-logistic regression analysis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The prevalence of overweight and obesity were 9.76% and 7.39% respectively, and the prevalence of obesity in boys and girls were 9.37% and 5.13% respectively (P<0.05). The obese children had significantly higher BMI, waist circumference (WC), waist to hip ratio(WHR), percentage of body fat (%BF), systolic blood pressure, and serum triglyceride (TG) and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) levels but significantly lower serum high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) level compared with the children with normal weight. BMI, %BF, WC and WHR were all positively correlated to serum levels of TG and LDL-C in obese children. Binge overeating, increased television viewing time, fast speed of eating and increased consumption of fried foods are all risk factors for the development of obesity. Preference for physical activity and sufficient physical activity were protective factors for obesity.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The prevalence of obesity of primary school students from Kaifu District of Changsha City is high in China. The development of childhood obesity is associated with poor eating behaviors, less physical activity and increased television viewing time. The control of childhood obesity may be beneficial to early prevention of some adult chronic diseases.</p>