Waist circumference predicts cardiovascular risk in young Australian children

Aim: It has been shown that compared with healthyweight children, overweight and obese primary school‐aged children have a higher incidence of hyperinsulinism, dyslipidaemia and hypertension. It is therefore important to investigate clinically relevant markers of cardiovascular risk in children. Waist circumference is a simple, non‐invasive anthropometric measure, but its association with cardiovascular risk profile in young Australian children is not clear. Methods: This study presents cross‐sectional data from the Growth and Development Study. The sample included 70 healthy weight children, 50 overweight children and 28 obese children (n = 148, 9.6 ± 1.9 years). All children had a medical assessment which included a physical examination (waist circumference, blood pressure), and investigations including glycated haemoglobin, total cholesterol, high‐density lipoprotein, low‐density lipoprotein, triglycerides, insulin, glucose and total homocysteine levels. An oral glucose tolerance test was performed in a subgroup of children (n = 119). Body mass index (BMI) was determined and BMI Z‐scores calculated. Results: In a multilevel model, waist circumference was the only significant anthropometric predictor of lipid profile (high‐density lipoprotein β = −0.01, P