80 VITAMIN SUBSTITUTION IN OBESE CHILDREN AND ADOLES- CENTS OURING WEIGHT REDUCTION

Top of pageAbstract In children and adolescents rapid weight reduction results in a considerable decline of serum vitamin A and E levels. In order to evaluate whether these “biochemical” vitamin deficiencies can be prevented by oral supplementation (30,000 IE vit A, 78.4 q/d vit E/d) we measured vit A, E and their transportproteins in 39 male obese children and adolescents: group I (n=20, mean±SD; 12.3±0.3 yrs, 68±12 % overweight) group II (n=19, 12.4±0.3 yrs, 71±101 overweight). Both goups received a hypocaloric diet ( 700 kcal/d), group II was vit supplemented. Vit.A and E were determined by HPLC, lipoproteins by ultracentrifugation and polyanionprecipitation. Weight loss after 3 weeks was 6.7±1.0 kg in 1 and 6.4±.0.7 kg In II. Substitution of vit A did not reveal any effect on serum vitamin concentrations, in both groups serum vlt A levels declined. However vit E levels decreased only in group I. Thus the vitamin E substitution prevented a decline of serum vit E inspite of decreased LDL-C levels (which acts as the main transport vehicle). From our results it is concluded that vit A serum levels can not be influenced by oral vit supplementation, which suggests the exixtence of other transportprotein independent vehicle functions.