CARDIOVASCULAR RISK-FACTORS AND DIETARY HABITS IN SECONDARY-SCHOOL CHILDREN IN SOUTHERN ITALY

Interest in research on atherosclerosis involving children has been th e consequence of confluent evidence that atherogenic process begins in early life and grows silently until the occurrence of clinical events in middle-age or later. We carried out a cross-study in the Mediterra nean area on a random sample of a secondary school of Casteldaccia (a farming and fishing village located on the Northern coast of Sicily, E ast of Palermo), consisting of 186 teen-agers (103 males and 83 female s) aged between 10 and 13 years (average age: 11.3 +/- 0.2 years). We determined: total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-Cho lesterol, apolipoproteins Al and B, glycaemia, body mass index (BMI), systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Dietary habits were recorded on two occasions by a weekly diary (of the 7 days food record type) with the collaboration of dieticians. The prevalence of plasma cholesterol levels between 170-200 mg% and exceeding 200 mg% was 24.2% and 12.4% respectively, of overweight (BMI>25) was 9.7% and of hypertension (SBP > 125 and/or DBP > 85 mmHg) was 8.6%. In comparison with Mediterranea n diet according to Euratom study (1969), the following are the most i mpressive findings: an increase of cholesterol (+54%) and fat intake ( +2% of total calories), a reduction of fibre intake (-32%) and an incr ease of 2S-P difference (+27%) and of total fats/fibre ratio (+53%).