Children's Belly Fat Affects Heart Risk High Waist Circumference
in Kids Increases Risk of Heart-Related Disorders Nov. 19, 2010
-- Children with higher levels of belly fat have higher pulse
pressures, which puts them at risk for heart-related disorders,
a new study finds. Gangadarshni Chandramohan, MD, of Los Angeles
Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center,
says doctors should measure children’s waist circumference to
judge their level of obesity, rather than the commonly used body
mass index, which is a ratio of weight to height. Chandramohan
and colleagues studied data on 4,667 children between 6 and 17,
all part of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey, which is done by the CDC in Atlanta. Body Mass Index
Doesn’t Correlate to Higher Pulse Pressures “We found the
children’s body mass didn’t correlate to higher pulse
pressures,” Chandramohan says in a news release. “This study
suggests pediatricians add waist measurements to their routine
screening of children to hel