Liver fat, not weight, predicts health risks in children with obesity: Scientists

New research shows that liver fat rather than bodyweight is the key factor predicting which children with obesity will develop serious health problems Israeli scientists announced on SundayA study by Tel Aviv University and the Dana Dwek Childrens Hospital in Tel Aviv suggests that obesity in children does not automatically spell poor health Instead researchers found that the amount of fat in the liver not bodyweight alone may be the key factor in predicting whether obese children develop serious illnesses Fatty liver in children can lead to type 2 diabetes high blood pressure cardiovascular disease and even liver cirrhosis later in lifeThe team examined 31 Israeli children with obesity seeking to understand why some develop metabolic complications while others remain healthy They discovered that children already showing signs of illness had livers composed of 14 per cent fat on averagemore than twice the 6 per cent seen in obese children who remained metabolically healthyThis is a crosssectional study which means we looked at the children thoroughly at one point in time rather than following them over the years said doctoral student Ron Sternfeld We can only indicate correlation not causation but the results are striking They show that some children with obesity can remain metabolically healthy despite their weightThe team used advanced magnetic resonance spectroscopy MRS to measure liver fat directly and noninvasively during MRI scans one of the few studies to apply this method in children Alongside MRS the researchers conducted a wide range of medical tests and reviewed the childrens records from the prenatal stage onwardInterestingly other commonly cited risk factors such as visceral fat around internal organs did not differ significantly between healthy and unhealthy children We checked many different criteria and found no difference between the two groups Sternfeld said The biggest difference was liver fat Fatty liver more than 55 per cent fat in the liver is linked to diabetes high blood pressure sleep apnea and more To our surprise some obese children do not have fatty liverProf Yftach Gepner who led the study said the findings shift the focus from weight alone to diet quality Children who were already ill consumed more sodium processed foods and certain saturated fats from animal proteinmainly red meat Gepner explained This suggests that protecting liver health through diet can help prevent metabolic illness even if a child remains obese A Mediterraneanstyle diet may offer significant protectionPrenatal factors also appear to play a role Children in the unhealthy obesity group were three times more likely to have been born following highrisk pregnancies than their healthy counterparts highlighting the complex interaction between earlylife factors and later metabolic healthWe found that children with obesity can be healthy Gepner said Even if reducing food intake or weight is difficult we can still protect their health by improving the nutritional quality of their diet and reducing liver fat The liver is the most important metabolic organ and monitoring it should be central to preventive medicineThe study suggests practical ways to protect children with obesity Improving diet qualityreducing processed foods sodium and saturated fatscan limit liver fat Early screening using noninvasive imaging can identify atrisk children while targeted care with nutrition counselling and physical activity guidance may help prevent diabetes high blood pressure and other obesityrelated illnessesThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever