High level of adolescents have high BMI, lipid level, says CDC

posted by Lawrence Shipman

A startling new study has found that a high number of adolescent children - many of whom are overweight - are already suffering from increased lipid levels and higher cholesterol levels than those their age have had in the past.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an analysis of data compiled between 1999-2006 found that 20.3 percent of children between the ages of 12-19 years of age were found to have abnormal lipid levels

Looking further into the data, it was found that 14.2 percent of youths with regular body mass indexes were found to have high lipid levels. Conversely, 22.3 percent of those whose BMIs classified them as overweight, and 42.9 of those considered to be obese had at least one abnormal lipid level.

"It's a large proportion of the youth that have at least one abnormal lipid level. That is concerning given the long term implications for heart disease," Ashleigh May of the CDC said, according to RedOrbit.com. "We really want to make sure that clinicians are aware of lipid screening guidelines and lifestyle interventions that are recommended, for youth, especially overweight and obese youth."

Because of the increased health risks that come with having high cholesterol, particularly if the person in question is still an adolescent, parents may be best served by taking a second look at any health insurance plans to make sure that their plan will cover any medical costs that may come up.