Mohammad Esmaeil Motlagh
1,2, Mostafa Qorbani
3, Amir-Masood Rafiemanzelat
4, Majzoubeh Taheri
5, Tahereh Aminaee
5, Gita Shafiee
6, Zeinab Ahadi
6, Mahshid Hajiali
7, Kimia Ghaderi
4, Ali Safaei
4, Azam Goodarzi
8, Hasan Ziaodini
9*, Ramin Heshmat
6*, Roya Kelishadi
101 Bureau of Family, Population, Youth and School Health, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran,Iran
2 Department of Pediatrics, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran
3 Non-communicable Diseases Research Center, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran
4 Student Research Committee, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
5 Office of Adolescents and School Health, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran
6 Chronic Diseases Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
7 Department of Cardiology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
8 Department of Health Education and Promotion, Tarbiat Modarres University, Tehran, Iran
9 Health Psychology Department, Research Center of Education Ministry Studies, Tehran, Iran
10 Pediatrics Department, Child Growth and Development Research Center, Research Institute for Primordial Prevention of Noncommunicable Disease, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Abstract
Introduction: This study presents the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors in a nationally representative sample of Iranian children and adolescents.
Methods: This multi-centric study was conducted in 2015 among 4200 students aged 7–18 years. They were selected by multistage cluster sampling from 30 provinces of Iran. Anthropometric indices, biochemical and clinical parameters were measured.
Results: The mean of weight, height, waist circumference (WC), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and fasting blood glucose (FBG) was higher in boys than in girls (P < 0.05). The mean of triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels were higher in girls than in boys (P < 0.05). The mean of weight, height, WC, SBP, DBP, alanine transaminase (ALT) and body mass index (BMI) was higher in urban than in rural residents (P < 0.05). Overall, 16.1%, 9.4% and 11.4% were underweight, overweight and obese. Abdominal obesity was documented in 21.6% of boys and 20.5% of girls. Low HDL-C was the most prevalent abnormality of lipid profile (29.5%) followed by high serum TGs (27.7%). Low HDL-C was more prevalent in boys than in girls (32.7% vs. 26%, respectively, P < 0.05). Prevalence of obesity and overweight were higher in girls than in boys (P < 0.05). The prevalence of obesity and overweight, abdominal obesity, and low HDL-C were higher in urban than in rural residents (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: We found considerably high prevalence of some cardiometabolic risk factors including overweight and obesity, low HDL-C and hypertriglyceridemia in Iranian children and adolescents. The current findings underscore the necessity of intensifying health interventions for primordial and primary prevention of non-communicable diseases from early life.