Independent association of clustered metabolic risk factors with cardiorespiratory fitness in youth aged 11-17 years

Background: Although the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) has increased in youth, the potential independent contribution of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) to the clustering of metabolic risk factors has received relatively little attention. Aim: This study evaluated associations between the clustering of metabolic risk factors and CRF in a sample of youth. Subjects and methods: Height, weight, BMI, fasting glucose, insulin, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides and blood pressures were measured in a cross-sectional sample of 924 youth (402 males, 522 females) of 11-17 years. CRF was assessed using the 20-metre shuttle run test. Physical activity (PA) was measured with a 3-day diary. Outcome variables were statistically normalized and expressed as Z-scores. A MetS risk score was computed as the mean of the Z-scores. Multiple linear regression was used to test associations between CRF and metabolic risk, adjusted for age, sex, BMI, PA and parental education. Results: CRF was inversely associated with MetS after adjustment for potential confounders. After adjusting for BMI, the relationship between CRF and metabolic risk has substantially improved. Conclusion: CRF was independently associated with the clustering of metabolic risk factors in youth of 11-17 years of age.