Ann Pediatr Endocrinol Metab.  2016 Mar;21(1):31-38. 10.6065/apem.2016.21.1.31.

Relationships of physical fitness and obesity with metabolic risk factors in children and adolescents: Chungju city cohort study

• Kim HJ
• Lee KJ
• Jeon YJ
• Ahn MB
• Jung IA
• Kim SH
• Cho WK
• Cho KS
• Park SH
• Jung MH
• Lee JH
• Suh BK

• KMID: 2161304
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.6065/apem.2016.21.1.31

Abstract

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships of physical fitness and obesity with metabolic risk factors in children and adolescents.
METHODS
This cohort study was conducted in Chungju city, South Korea. Total 843 subjects were enrolled, including 193 elementary school 4th grade male (E4M), 189 elementary school 4th grade female (E4F) and 461 male-middle school students (M1M). The subjects were also classified into 2 groups by body mass index; normal weight (NW) group and overweight included obesity (OW/OB) group. Physical fitness was measured by shuttle run (cardiorespiratory fitness, CRF), sit and reach (flexibility), handgrip strength (muscular strength) and stand long jump (agility).
RESULTS
The prevalence of OW/OB was respectively 33.7% (65 of 193) among E4M, 28.6% (54 of 189) among E4F, and 28.0% (129 of 461) among M1M. Hematocrit, white blood cell, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein, insulin, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance, systolic and diastolic blood pressure were higher, while high-density lipoprotein were lower in the OW/OB group than in the NW group. The OW/OB group presented significantly lower CRF (P<0.01) and lower agility, but higher muscular strength compared with NW group. CRF was negatively correlated with obesity indices and metabolic risk factors. After adjustments for potential confounders, odds ratios for 4th-5th grade CRF of OW/OB compared NW in the E4M, E4F, M1M, were 7.38 (95 % CI, 3.24-16.83), 4.10 (95% CI, 1.83-9.18), 16.06 (95% CI, 8.23-31.00) (P<0.01).
CONCLUSION
Our study has shown that CRF has negative correlation with OW/OB in children and adolescents of Chungju city. We suggest that improvement of CRF through regular physical activity would be an important method for reducing the metabolic risks of childhood obesity.

Keyword

Obesity; Overweight; Child; Adolescent; Physical fitness

MeSH Terms

Adolescent*
Blood Pressure
Body Mass Index
Child*
Chungcheongbuk-do*
Cohort Studies*
Female
Hematocrit
Homeostasis
Humans
Insulin
Insulin Resistance
Korea
Leukocytes
Lipoproteins
Male
Motor Activity
Obesity*
Odds Ratio
Overweight
Pediatric Obesity
Physical Fitness*
Prevalence
Risk Factors*
Triglycerides
Insulin
Lipoproteins

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 The average score of components of physical fitness in normal weight vs. overweight including obesity according to each groups (E4M, E4F, M1M). (A) Cardiovascular fitness. (B) Flexibility. (C) Muscular strength. (D) Agility. NW, normal weight and obesity; E4M, elementary school 4th grade male students; E4F, elementary school 4th grade female students; M1M, middle school 1st grade male students. *P<0.05.

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