Potential role of oxidative stress in childhood obesity and its relation to inflammation

Low-grade inflammation, metabolism, and oxidative stress are the core underlying mechanisms of pathogenesis in obesity. The aim of this study was to assess the role of oxidative stress and inflammatory markers in obese children and to identify their role in obesity-related complications. A case-control study enrolled 100 obese and 80 controls with mean age of (10.1+/-2.3) and (9.6+/-1.7) respectively, obese children were sub classified into two groups according to the clinic-metabolic parameters of metabolic syndrome (MetS). Parameters investigated were anthropometric measurements, blood pressure (BP), total Cholesterol (TC), Triglycerides (TG), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL), Low-density lipoprotein (LDL), Fasting serum glucose (FSG), fasting serum insulin (FSI), homeostasis model assessment- IR (HOMA-IR), lipid peroxide and Catalase (CAT), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-10 (IL-10). Diastolic blood pressure (DBP) Z-Score, TC, TG, LDL, FBG, HOMA-IR, and IL-6 were significantly higher in obese children than controls group (p < 0.01) and in those with (MetS) compared to obese children without (MetS) (p < 0.05). Lipid peroxide was significantly higher, while catalase and IL-10 were significantly lower in obese children (p < 0.05). There was positive correlation between BMI-Z score and each of TG, HOMA-IR, DBP Z-Score and IL-6 (p < 0.05). Positive significant correlation seemed between lipid peroxide and both DBP Z-score and HOMA-IR (P<0.01). IL 6, lipid peroxide parameters have great utility as markers of metabolic risk in obese children.