University of Copenhagen scientists have discovered lipid biomarkers that indicate an elevated risk of developing cardiometabolic complications in children with obesity.
The research, published in Nature Medicine, describes a link between lipid species that are linked to cardiometabolic disease in adults and their strong association with cardiometabolic risk factors in children and teens with obesity.
“Our study shows that the impact of cardiometabolic associated lipid species emerges early in life in children with obesity, particularly affecting liver function and glucose metabolism. These risk lipid species could potentially be explored further as biomarkers for diagnosing or predicting cardiometabolic risk in children at high risk, offering new insights for early detection and intervention,” says Postdoc Yun Huang from the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research at the University of Copenhagen.
To further understand how these lipid profiles may respond to lifestyle changes, the researchers identified 186 children and teens to undergo a one-year obesity management program. During the study, 83% of the participants reduced their weight, and researchers discovered that the levels of harmful lipids were reduced alongside this weightloss.
“This study reinforces the need to treat childhood obesity far more seriously, as it increases the risk of developing a range of diseases that lower quality of life. Thankfully, we have shown that early intervention can reverse the risk and allow children and teenagers the possibility of living long disease-free lives as adults,” says Professor Torben Hansen from the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research at the University of Copenhagen.