Relationship between abdominal adiposity, cardiovascular fitness, and biomarkers of cardiovascular risk in British adolescents

Abstract Objective Puberty is a critical time in the development of overweight and obesity. The aim of this study was to examine relationships between measures of adiposity, cardiovascular fitness, and biomarkers of cardiovascular disease risk in adolescents. Methods In a cross-sectional study design, 129 girls and 95 boys aged 12.9–14.4 years at various stages of puberty were included, along with their mothers ( n  = 217) and fathers ( n  = 207). Anthropometric assessments of adiposity were made, along with cardiovascular physical fitness, using the 20-m shuttle run test, and biomarkers associated with cardiovascular risk, including glucose, insulin, triglyceride, fibrinogen, and C-reactive protein concentrations. Results Waist-to-height ratio values were similar in boys and girls and correlated positively with glucose, insulin, triglyceride, fibrinogen, and C-reactive protein concentrations, and inversely with cardiovascular fitness scores. Skinfold thickness measurements were higher in girls. High-molecular-weight adiponectin concentrations were lower in boys than girls, particularly in late puberty, and C-reactive protein levels were higher. Cardiovascular fitness, maternal body mass index, and paternal body mass index contributed independently to the variance in waist measurements in girls and boys. Gender, triceps skinfold thickness, and weight-to-height ratio, but not parental body mass index, contributed independently to the variance in cardiovascular fitness. Conclusion There is a relationship between measures of adolescent adiposity and parental weight that involves factors other than cardiovascular fitness. Adolescent boys have relatively more abdominal fat than girls and a tendency to have a proinflammatory profile of biomarkers. These observations suggest that family and social environmental interventions are best undertaken earlier in childhood, particularly among boys.