Abstract
Objective
To investigate the prospective association of organized leisure-time sports participation
with cardiovascular risk in children.
Methods
Students were recruited from 10 public primary schools. From July 2009 to October
2010, parents reported children's weekly organized leisure-time sports participation
via text messaging. Clustered cardiovascular risk was estimated with a composite score
comprising fasting serum triglyceride levels, homeostasis assessment model-estimated
insulin resistance, total to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, and systolic
blood pressure. Additional outcomes were body mass index categories and fasting serum
insulin and glucose concentrations. Associations were explored with generalized estimating
equations and reported with beta coefficients (β) and percent difference per weekly sports session or incidence rate ratios. All models
were adjusted for baseline values and other potential confounders.
Results
In total, 1197 children (53% female) with a mean age of 8.4±1.4 years were included.
Participating in sports for 53 weeks was associated with lower clustered cardiovascular
risk (β, −0.25; 95% CI, −0.41 to −0.10; percent difference, 3.2%; 95% CI, 5.2%-1.3%). Similar
outcomes were observed for log homeostasis assessment model-estimated insulin resistance
(β, −0.08; 95% CI, −0.12 to −0.04; percent difference, 3.4%; 5.1%-1.7%) and log insulin
(β, −0.07; 95% CI, −0.11 to −0.04; percent difference, 2.6%; 95% CI, 4.0%-1.5%). Sports
participation was associated with a 20% decreased risk of overweight/obesity (incidence
rate ratio, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.64-0.96).
Conclusion
Participating in organized leisure-time sports for approximately 1 year is associated
with decreased clustered cardiovascular risk in children. These findings show that
participating in youth sports may be an effective strategy to reduce cardiovascular
risk in children.
Abbreviations and Acronyms:
HDL-C (high-density lipoprotein cholesterol), HOMA-IR (homeostasis assessment model-estimated insulin resistance), IRR (incident rate ratio)To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: November 16, 2016
Footnotes
Grant Support: The study was supported by grants from the TRYG Foundation, University College Lillebaelt, University of Southern Denmark, the Nordea Foundation, the IMK Foundation, the Region of Southern Denmark, the Egmont Foundation, the A.J. Andersen Foundation, the Danish Rheumatism Association, Østifternes Foundation, Brd. Hartmann's Foundation, TEAM Denmark, the Danish Chiropractor Foundation, and the Nordic Institute of Chiropractic and Clinical Biomechanics. The funding sources played no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; and preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript.
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© 2016 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
