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Metabolic syndrome among children aged 6 to 11 years, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates: Role of obesity
Author(s) -
Shah Syed Mahboob,
Aziz Faisal,
Al Meskari Fatima,
Al Kaabi Juma,
Khan Unab I.,
Jaacks Lindsay M.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
pediatric diabetes
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.678
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 1399-5448
pISSN - 1399-543X
DOI - 10.1111/pedi.13027
Subject(s) - medicine , overweight , metabolic syndrome , obesity , body mass index , anthropometry , percentile , national cholesterol education program , confidence interval , odds ratio , population , demography , pediatrics , gerontology , environmental health , statistics , mathematics , sociology
Objectives To evaluate the association of metabolic syndrome with the varying degrees of obesity among children aged 6 to 11 years in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Methods As an ancillary to the primary study examining prevalence of MetS in a random sample of 1186 adolescents from 114 schools in Al Ain, parents and siblings aged 6 to 11 years were invited to participate in this study. After informed consent from parents and assent from children, trained nurses administered questionnaires to assess socio‐demographic and lifestyle variables and conducted anthropometric measurements. Fasting blood samples were drawn to measure plasma lipids and glucose. We used Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC)‐defined categories of body mass index (BMI = kg/m 2 ) for normal weight (<85th percentile), overweight (≥85th to 94th percentile), and obese (≥95th percentiles). MetS was defined according to National Cholesterol Education Program's (NCEP)/Adult Treatment Panel III (ATP III) criteria. Results Of the total 234 siblings aged 6 to 11 years, 8.9% (95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 5.6‐13.4) had MetS. The prevalence of MetS increased with the severity of obesity, 4.5% in normal, 16.7% in overweight, and 30.0% in obese subjects. The age, sex, and ethnicity adjusted odds (1.55, 95% CI: 1.23‐1.96) of MetS increased significantly with per unit increase in BMI. Conclusions The prevalence of MetS in study subjects increased with an increase in BMI. School‐based interventions targeting metabolic risks in this population are urgently needed.