Anthropometric indices and selected nutrient intakes of young children in Kwangju, Korea

Overview of noncommunicable diseases in Korean children and adolescents: focus on obesity and its effect on metabolic syndrome

Obesity during childhood is a dominant risk factor for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), and is itself considered a disease that needs to be treated. Recently, the growth in childhood obesity in Korea has become stagnant; however, two in every ten children are still overweight. In addition, 60% or more of overweight children have at least one metabolic syndrome risk factor. Thus, childhood obesity should be controlled through lifestyle modification. This paper reviews studies of the modifiable risk factors of obesity in Korean children. According to the life-course approach, preschool-aged children (<5 years) are influenced by their parents rather than individual habits because they are under mostly parental care. Elementary school-aged children (6 to 11 years) are affected by overlapping individual and parental effects. This may mean that the establishment of individual behavior patterns begins during this period. The conditions of poor eating habits such as skipping meals, eating out, and high fat intake, along with low physical activity, facilitate increased obesity among adolescents (12 to 18 years). Notably, adolescent girls show high rates of both underweight and obesity, which may lead to the development of NCDs in their offspring. Therefore, the problem of NCDs is no longer limited to adults, but is also prevalent among children. In addition, early intervention offers cost-effective opportunities for preventing NCDs. Thus, children need primary consideration, adequate monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment to reduce the burden of NCDs later in adulthood.

The relationship between obesity, insulin and arsenic methylation capability in Taiwan adolescents

PURPOSE

This study evaluated the arsenic methylation profile of adolescents and explored the influence of body mass index (BMI) on the arsenic methylation profile of adolescents in an area of Taiwan with no-obvious arsenic exposure.

METHODS

This study evaluated 202 normal weight students and 101 obese students from eight elementary schools, recruited from September 2009 to December 2009. Concentrations of urinary arsenic species, including inorganic arsenic, monomethylarsonic acid (MMA(5+)) and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA(5+)) were determined by a high-performance liquid chromatography-linked hydride generator and atomic absorption spectrometry.

RESULTS

Urinary total arsenic was significantly decreased with increasing BMI, indicating that obese children may retain higher levels of arsenic in the body, as compared to normal weight children. Participants with obesity accompanied by high insulin levels had higher inorganic arsenic, significantly higher MMA percentage and significantly lower DMA percentage than those with obesity and low insulin levels. It seems children with obesity and high insulin levels had lower arsenic methylation capacity than those with obesity and low insulin.

CONCLUSIONS

This is the first study to demonstrate that total urinary arsenic is negatively associated with the BMI in adolescents in Taiwan, adjusted for age and sex. Obese adolescents with high insulin levels had significantly higher MMA% and significantly lower DMA% than obese adolescents with low insulin.