Obesity and cardiovascular risk among Sri Lankan adolescents: Association of adipokines with anthropometric indices of obesity and lipid profile

Abstract

Objectives: Obesity and being overweight among adolescents pose a significant problem and are known to cause several physical and biochemical disorders during adulthood. This study was designed to identify the biomarkers of obesity and describe associations with selected metabolic disorders of obesity among Sri Lankan adolescents. Methods: The present study compared the characteristics of obese (n = 121) and normal weight (n = 263) adolescents, including sociodemographic, anthropometric, and selected biochemical parameters (e.g., lipid profile, serum leptin, adiponectin, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hs-CRP]). An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique and fully automated clinical chemistry analyzer were used to analyze the biochemical parameters among adolescents ages 10 to 16. Results: The mean age of the sample was 13.1 y [standard deviation (SD): 1.9 y], and the male-to-female ratio 1:1. The mean weight of obese children was 55.70 kg (SD: 14.82 kg), which was significantly higher than that of children of normal weight [41.63 kg (SD: 7.88 kg)]. Total cholesterol, triacylglycerol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were significantly higher (P = 0.000) among obese adolescents compared with those of normal weight. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol was significantly lower among obese adolescents. Serum leptin and hs-CRP were higher among obese adolescents, but adiponectin was lower. In the multivariate analysis, owing to confounding effects among the tested adipokines, serum leptin was the only predictor of an abnormal lipid profile. Conclusions: Serum leptin, adiponectin, and hs-CRP were found to be reliable biomarkers of predicting adiposity related metabolic disorders in adolescents. Obese adolescents showed disorders in the lipid metabolism with abnormal lipid profiles compared with children of normal weight.