Body fat, caloric intake, and plasma leptin levels in women with anorexia nervosa

Objective: To measure serum leptin concentrations in nomen with anorexia ne rvosa (AN) and to identify independent predictors of leptin levels, thereby allowing hormone levels to be modeled using regression analysis. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 15 AN inpatients and 16 healthy control subjects . Age, height, weight, percent body fat, total caloric intake, fat intake, and fasting plasma leptin levels were recorded: Stepwise forward regression analysis was carried out to identify predictors of leptin levels. Results: Circulating leptin concentrations in AN were 3.5 +/- 0.5 versus 7.6 +/- 1. 2 ng/ml in control subjects. Percent body fat correlated best with leptin l evels in anorexic and control subjects (r = .63; p = .0002), with caloric i ntake showing only a moderate correlation (r = .47; p = .008). Only percent body fat was a significant predictor of plasma leptin levels in our regres sion model. Discussion: Leptin levels are proportionately lower in AN as co mpared to healthy controls. If appears that physiological regulation of pla sma levels with respect to percent body fat is maintained in individuals wi th little body fat. (C) 1999 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.