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Body fat, fat distribution and serum lipids, lipoproteins and apolipoproteins in African-American and Caucasian-American prepubertal children

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the present study was to determine the impact of body fat mass and fat distribution on serum lipids, lipoproteins and apolipoproteins in African-American and Caucasian-American prepubertal children.

SUBJECTS: Study participants included 62 African-American children (age 8.3±1.4 y; body mass 37.3±13.6 kg; height 133±11 cm) and 39 Caucasian children (age 8.6±1.2 y; body mass 34.1±11.0 kg; height 131±9 cm).

METHODS: Venous blood samples were obtained after a 12 h overnight fast and serum was analyzed for total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), triacylglycerol (TAG), apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I), apolipoprotein B (ApoB) and lipoprotein (a) (Lp(a)) concentrations. Body composition and body fat distribution were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and computed tomography, respectively.

RESULTS: African-American children had lower TAG (46±20 vs 61±32 mg/dl, P=0.015) and higher Lp(a) (34±25 vs 17±28 mg/dl, P=0.001) and HDL-C (44±11 vs 39±8 mg/dl, P=0.041). There were no ethnic differences in TC, ApoA-I and ApoB (P=0.535, P=0.218, P=0.418, respectively). The ethnic difference in TAG and Lp(a) was not explained by total fat or abdominal fat. The ethnic difference in HDL-C was explained by visceral fat and TAG.

CONCLUSION: In prepubertal children, neither body fat nor fat distribution explain the ethnic difference in TAG or Lp(a), but visceral fat and TAG may contribute to differences in HDL-C.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the US Department of Agriculture (95-37200-1643), the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R29 HD 32668; RO1 HD/HL 33064), Dairy Management Incorporated, and The General Clinical Research Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (MO1-RR00032). The authors thank Tena Hilario, Kang-Mei Ren, Reinaldo Figueroa-Colon, MD, and the nurses at the GCRC for excellent clinical and technical assistance. We are especially grateful to the children and their families for their participation in this study.

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Correspondence to MI Goran.

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Herd, S., Gower, B., Dashti, N. et al. Body fat, fat distribution and serum lipids, lipoproteins and apolipoproteins in African-American and Caucasian-American prepubertal children. Int J Obes 25, 198–204 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0801524

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