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Relationship between fat distribution and cardiometabolic risk in Hispanic girls

Megan Hetherington-Rauth1, Jennifer W Bea1,2,3, Vinson R Lee1

  • 1Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona.

American Journal of Human Biology : the Official Journal of the Human Biology Council
|August 22, 2018
PubMed

Insights

Body fat distribution, not just total fat, impacts cardiometabolic risk in Hispanic girls. Higher gynoid and leg fat are linked to lower risk, similar to total adiposity measures.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric endocrinology
  • Cardiovascular health in children
  • Body composition analysis

Background:

  • In adults, specific body fat depots significantly influence cardiometabolic risk, a relationship not well-established in children.
  • Understanding regional adiposity in pediatric populations is crucial for targeted health interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) derived body fat distribution and total adiposity with cardiometabolic risk factors in Hispanic girls.
  • To compare the predictive performance of regional versus total body fat measures on cardiometabolic health outcomes.

Main Methods:

  • Assessed total body fat percentage and regional fat distribution (android, gynoid, leg, trunk) using DXA in 232 Hispanic girls (mean age 10.7 years).
  • Measured cardiometabolic biomarkers including insulin, glucose, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), triglycerides (TG), LDL-C, and HDL-C.
  • Employed regression models and partial correlations, controlling for somatic maturation, to analyze relationships between adiposity measures and risk factors.

Main Results:

  • Both total and regional adiposity measures were significantly associated with most cardiometabolic risk factors, excluding fasting glucose.
  • Total and regional fat measures demonstrated similar predictive capabilities for cardiometabolic biomarkers.
  • Insulin and HOMA-IR showed the most variance explained (33%-43%) by adiposity measures.
  • A higher percentage of gynoid and leg fat correlated negatively with insulin, HOMA-IR, TG, and LDL-C, and positively with HDL-C.

Conclusions:

  • Total and regional body fat measures exhibit comparable efficacy in predicting cardiometabolic risk among Hispanic girls.
  • Increased fat distribution in the gynoid and leg regions is associated with a reduced cardiometabolic risk profile in this cohort.
Abstract

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