Never2early.org - For Health Professionals - Heart Disease and Kids: What the Research Shows

Home Search

HomeFor Health Professionals - Heart Disease and Kids: What the Research Shows

For Health Professionals

Heart Disease and Kids: What the Research Shows

Children who eat fatty diets may be on the road to having heart disease in the future. Here are some facts, taken from a variety of scientific resources.

Many Children and Teens Have High Cholesterol Levels

According to a national statistics, about 10 percent of adolescents aged 12 to 19 have total cholesterol levels above 200 mg/dl.
Heart-health organizations estimate that millions of children already have elevated cholesterol levels.
Children and adolescents who have high cholesterol levels are more likely than those in the general population to become adults with high cholesterol levels.
Researchers have found fatty buildup (called “atherosclerotic lesions or plaques”) in arteries of young children, especially in the arteries that supply blood to the heart.

Childhood Obesity is on the Rise

The well-known Bogalusa Heart Study found that overweight children between the ages of 5 and 17 were 2.4 times more likely to have high cholesterol levels than those of normal weight children. Of the overweight children in the study, over half had at least one risk factor for heart disease.
Over 25% of children and adolescents aged 2 to 19 are overweight and this trend is on the rise.
Excess body fat can lead to a much higher risk for many serious disorders including diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels and heart disease.

Children are Not Eating Heart- Healthy

Recent studies have shown that children and adolescents are eating approximately 13% of calories from saturated fat, which is more than the recommended 10% of calories from saturated fat.
According to population data, about 80% of school children don’t eat the recommended 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

Children Are Not Engaging in Enough Physical Activity

The number of students who take physical education classes has dropped from 41.6 percent in 1991 to 29.1 percent in 1999.
Of the students who do take physical education, only one-third report that they actually exercise during class for 20 minutes or more.
Participation in intense physical activity is also on the decrease. In one recent survey, 67 percent of 9th grade girls participated while only 45 percent participated in 12th grade.
One survey showed that by age 18 or 19, 56 percent of African-American girls and 31 percent of white girls don’t participate in any leisure physical activity.

Adolescent Smoking is On the Rise

Smoking is one lifestyle behavior that is linked with increased risk of many diseases, including heart disease.
Compared to 27.5 percent in 1991, 28.5 percent of high school students smoked cigarettes in 2001.
About 80 percent of people who use tobacco begin before age 18. That would translate to five million who will eventually die from a disease related to smoking.
Choosing to quit can help almost immediately. One year after quitting, the risk of heart disease is cut in half, and within 15 years, the risk of dying from heart disease for an ex-smoker approaches that of a lifetime nonsmoker.