ABSTRACT
It is now well recognised that the process leading to atherosclerosis has paediatric origins[1]. Furthermore, a number of studies have indicated that a paediatric propensity for adverse lipid-lipoprotein concentrations, a primary risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD), may be carried into adulthood[2]. The studies that have attempted to examine the independent effect of variables such as % body fat, cardiorespiratory fitness, diet and habitual physical activity (HPA) on the blood lipid-lipoprotein profile have not always reported consistent findings[3, 4, 5]. Whilst some studies have identified an association between cardiorespiratory fitness and lipid-lipoprotein profile[6, 7], others have not[5]. Moreover, it has been reported[3] that age may be regarded as a confounding variable when attempting to quantify independent contributions to lipid-lipoprotein variability. By studying a narrow age range of children this problem may be controlled. The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between prepubertal children’s lipid-lipoprotein profile, and cardiorespiratory fitness, HPA and % body fat. It was hypothesised that a higher HPA pattern would be related to a more favourable lipid-lipoprotein profile.
