Blood sugar levels are higher in obese young children in Sweden than in Poland

Aim An elevated fasting glucose level is an early sign of metabolic dysfunction in obese children. This study compared fasting glucose levels in obese young children in Poland and Sweden. Methods We identified 109 obese children aged between two and 10 years from a Polish obesity register, with a mean BMI SDS (SD) of 3.72 (0.86). Each Polish child was matched by gender, age and degree of obesity, with ten children (n = 1090) from BORIS, the Swedish national childhood obesity treatment register. A group of 86 Swedish nonobese children served as controls. Results The mean fasting glucose values of the Polish, Swedish and nonobese cohorts were 4.73 (0.51) mmol/L, 4.92 (0.50) mmol/L and 4.56 (0.39) mmol/L, respectively. After adjusting for variables affecting fasting glucose, the mean glucose value of the Swedish obese children was 0.20 mmol/L higher than that of Polish obese children (p < 0.0001) and 0.41 mmol/L higher than in nonobese controls (p < 0.0001). Conclusion Swedish obese young children had higher glucose levels than Polish obese young children. This suggests that Swedish obese children face a higher risk of the prediabetic stage impaired fasting glycaemia.