الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract SUMMARY ver the past 30 years, childhood overweight/obesity, often beginning in infancy and toddlerhood, has reached epidemic proportions, particularly among minority and/or lowincome populations in high-income countries. Rates of pediatric obesity (BMI ≥ 95th percentile) have almost tripled over the past 25 years, with current estimates showing a prevalence rate of 16% for girls and 18% for boys. The prevalence of adolescent and childhood overweight and obesity in children living in Egypt, Brazil and Mexico has reached levels comparable to those seen in industrialized nations. Obesity is associated with alterations in iron metabolism leading to iron deficiency which is probably the most prevalent single common micronutrient deficiency in the world today. Aim of the study was: 1) To assess iron status among overweight/ obese primary school children. With age ranging from 6 years till preadolescence or age 12 years with Tanner score ≤ 2. 2) To assess the effect of 6 months dieting program on iron status improvement in overweight/obese children. 3) To study the psychological basis of obesity in children as well as associated co-morbidities. 4) To assess the prevalence of obesity among primary school students. The study was conducted on 2 groups: Group 1 1025 were recruited from 2 urban primary schools with moderate-high social standards among children with age between 6 to 12 years. Weight, height were measured and body mass index was calculated. All measures were plotted on the percentiles for age. The percentage of obese and overweight children was calculated. Group 2 includes 150 children, 100 obese children and 50 normal weight children with age ranging between 6 and 12 years. All 150 subjects were subjected to: 1) A questionnaire: inquiring about personal data, Socioeconomic data, family history of obesity, weight related attitudes, physical exercise performance, personal believes about diet (self-efficacy, barriers to change and dietary believes), previous trials to lose weight and school performance. 2) Full clinical examination: including a) Systemic examination and blood pressure measurements. b) Anthropometric measurements which include weight, height and body mass index. 3) Laboratory investigations: complete blood picture, serum iron, ferritin, transferrin saturation, total iron binding capacity, soluble transferrin receptor, serum triglycerides and serum cholesterol. All obese children were subjected to weight reduction program which includes diet regimen, exercise and behavioral modification. All anthropometric and laboratory measures were measured again after the 6 months intervention. The study revealed the following: 1) Prevalence of overweight and obesity was 24.39% and 19.90% respectively among screened primary school children. It was more common among boys compared to girls. 2) Serum iron, ferritin and transferrin saturation were significantly lower in obese children compared to control. 3) Soluble transferrin receptor was significantly higher in obese children compared to control and was positively correlated to body mass index. 4) Serum triglycerides was significantly higher in obese children but there was no difference between patients and control as regards total cholesterol. 5) After the weight reduction program, children who succeeded to lose weight showed improvement in the iron status and decrease in soluble transferrin receptor |