BackgroundThe Body Mass Index (BMI) has long been used as an anthropometric measurement. Waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) have been proposed as alternatives to BMI. Recently, two new anthropometric indices, the A Body Shape Index (ABSI) and Body Roundness Index (BRI) have been developed as possible improved alternatives to BMI and WC. The main research aim is to assess the capacity of the ABSI and BRI to identify subjects with diabetes mellitus (DM) and the secondary aim is to determine whether ABSI and/or BRI is superior to the traditional body indices (BMI, WC, and WHtR).Methods and ResultsThis cross-sectional study was conducted in the rural areas of northeast China from January 2012 to August 2013, and the final analysis included data obtained form 5253 men and 6092 women. 1182 participants (10.4 %) suffered from DM. Spearman rank test showed that BRI and WHtR showed the highest Spearman correlation coefficient for DM whereas ABSI showed the lowest. The prevalence of DM increased across quartiles for ABSI, BMI, BRI, WC and WHtR. A multivariate logistic regression analysis of the presence of DM for the highest quartile vs. the lowest quartile of each anthropometric measure, showed that the WHtR was the best predictor of DM (OR: 2.40, 95 % CI: 1.42–3.39 in men; OR: 2.67, 95 % CI: 1.60–3.74 in women, both P < 0.001), and the ABSI was the poorest predictor of DM (OR: 1.51, 95 % CI: 1.05–1.97 in men; OR: 1.55, 95 % CI: 1.07–2.04 in women, both P < 0.05). ABSI showed the lowest AUCs (AUC: 0.61, 95 % CI: 0.58–0.63 for men; AUC: 0.61, 95 % CI: 0.59–0.63 for women) for DM in both sexes, while BRI (AUC: 0.66, 95 % CI: 0.63–0.68 for men; AUC: 0.67, 95 % CI: 0.65–0.69 for women) had high AUCs for DM that equaled those of WHtR.ConclusionsOur results showed neither ABSI nor BRI were superior to BMI, WC, or WHtR for predicting the presence of DM. ABSI showed the weakest predictive ability, while BRI showed potential for use as an alternative obesity measure in assessment of DM.

BackgroundThe last study reported the prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) in rural Northeast China was conducted approximately ten years ago. We aimed to update the data on the prevalence and epidemiological features of MetS in rural Northeast China.MethodsThis survey was conducted from July 2012 to August 2013. In this study, a total of 11,496 residents from the rural Northeast China were randomly selected and examined. MetS was defined according to the ATPIII-modified criteria. Data regarding the demographic and lifestyle characteristics and the blood biochemical indexes of these participants were collected by well-trained personnel.ResultsThe prevalence of MetS was 39.0% and was more prevalent in women than in men (45.6% vs. 31.4%, P < 0.001). Elevated blood pressure was the most common metabolic disorder in both genders (71.7% in males and 63.3% in females). Only 11.2% and 9.6% of males and females, respectively, in this study had no metabolic disorders. Multivariate logistic regression, after adjusting for possible confounders, revealed the following factors that increased the risk of MetS: being female, older age, having more than one child, a family income of >20,000 CNY per year, longer sleep duration (>9 h/d), chronic disease status, frequent consumption of beans or bean products and frequent tea drinking. Completion of education through middle school, moderate physical activity and smoking were correlated with lower rates of MetS.ConclusionThe prevalence of MetS was high in the rural areas of China, especially among females. In addition to some of the more conventional risk factors associated with MetS, including age, sex, annual income and educational status, we also found that having more than one child and frequent consumption of tea and beans were risk factors for MetS, while smoking was a common factor among those that did not have MetS in rural Northeast China.

Prehypertensive patients have a greater risk of incident stroke, MI and total CVD events. The impact was markedly different between the low and high prehypertension ranges

The increasing trend of hyperuricemia in urban areas of China has been noted in the past decade. However, the prevalence of hyperuricemia in rural China has not been extensively investigated. We aimed to estimate the prevalence and risk factors of hyperuricemia and the associated comorbidities in rural Northeast China. This survey was conducted from July 2012 to August 2013. In this study, a total of 11,576 residents from the rural Northeast China were randomly selected and examined. Hyperuricemia was defined as serum uric acid ≥416 μmol/l in men and ≥357 μmol/l in women. Data regarding the demographic and lifestyle characteristics and the blood biochemical indexes of these participants were collected by well-trained personnel. The prevalence of hyperuricemia was 10.9 % and was more prevalent in men than in women (15.0 vs. 7.3 %, P < 0.001). Multivariate logistic regression models revealed that besides age, hyperuricemia in men was associated with ethnic minority [OR (95 %): 0.683 (0.472,0.989)], physical activity [moderate, OR (95 %): 0.716 (0.596,0.859); high, OR (95 %): 0.527 (0.354,0.786)], current smoking [OR(95 %):1.380 (1.179,1.616)], and current drinking [OR(95 %):0.705 (0.603,0.825)], while in women was only associated with ethnic minority [OR(95 %):0.485 (0.262,0.896)]. After adjusting for possible confounders, hyperuricemia was related to different subtypes of cardiometabolic comorbidities in both gender like abdominal obesity, general obesity, hypertriglyceridemia, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and low HDL-C. Besides, in women only, hyperuricemia was related to diabetes and high LDL-C. Hyperuricemia was common among residents living in rural Northeast China especially among men. Ethnic minority, physical activity, current smoking, and drinking contributed to hyperuricemia in this population.

We aimed to compare the relative strength of the association between anthropometric obesity indices and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Another objective was to examine whether the visceral adiposity index (VAI) and lipid accumulation product index (LAPI) can identify CKD in the rural population of China. There were 5168 males and 6024 females involved in this cross-sectional study, and 237 participants (2.12%) suffered from CKD. Obesity indices included body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), VAI and LAPI. VAI and LAPI were calculated with triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), BMI and WC. VAI = [WC/39.68 + (1.88 × BMI)] × (TG /1.03) × (1.31/ HDL) for males; VAI = [WC/36.58 + (1.89 × BMI)] × (TG/0.81) × (1.52/HDL) for females. LAPI = (WC-65) × TG for males, LAPI = (WC-58) × TG for females. CKD was defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of less than 60 mL/min per 1.73 m2. The prevalence of CKD increased across quartiles for WHtR, VAI and LAPI. A multivariate logistic regression analysis of the presence of CKD for the highest quartile vs. the lowest quartile of each anthropometric measure showed that the VAI was the best predictor of CKD in females (OR: 4.21, 95% CI: 2.09–8.47, p < 0.001). VAI showed the highest AUC for CKD (AUC: 0.68, 95% CI: 0.65–0.72) and LAPI came second (AUC: 0.66, 95% CI: 0.61–0.70) in females compared with BMI (both p-values < 0.001). However, compared with the traditional index of the BMI, the anthropometric measures VAI, LAPI, WC, and WHtR had no statistically significant capacity to predict CKD in males. Our results showed that both VAI and LAPI were significantly associated with CKD in the rural population of northeast China. Furthermore, VAI and LAPI were superior to BMI, WC and WHtR for predicting CKD only in females.

Background: Short sleep duration was reported to be associated with an increased risk of hypertension among adults. The present study aimed to investigate this association in children and adolescents. Hypothesis: Short sleep duration is related to higher risk of hypertension among children and adolescents. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 4902 children and adolescents age 5 to 18 years. Blood pressure (BP) was measured at the research center and classified using the population-based percentiles. Sleep duration and related information were determined through questionnaires. Results: The prevalence of hypertension and prehypertension were 20.3% and 15%, respectively. The median sleep duration was 8.77 ± 1.07 hours (mean ± standard deviation). A short sleep duration (<9 hours) was associated with a higher risk of hypertension when compared with the group sleeping longer (9

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the associations between alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) with metabolic syndrome (MetS) in the general Chinese population. Methods: This study was a multicenter, cross-sectional study which was conducted in rural areas of China from the 2012 to 2013 Northeast China Rural Cardiovascular Health Study (NCRCHS), and 11,573 adults with complete data were included in our final analysis. Elevated ALT and AST levels were defined as >40 U/L. Serum ALT and AST levels within the reference range were divided into quartiles, and their associations with MetS were evaluated by logistic regressions. Results: A total of 7.4% and 3.5% participants had elevated serum ALT and AST levels, respectively. The prevalence of MetS was 37.3% in males and 45.8% in females. After adjusting for potential confounders, we found ALT level elevation, even within the reference range, was independently associated with MetS. The odds ratio (OR) values of MetS in the ALT quartiles 2-4 groups within the reference range were 1.113 (95% CI: 1.019-1.280), 1.375 (95% CI: 1.212-1.560), 1.878 (95% CI: 1.650-2.138) compared with the ALT quartile 1 group, and OR in the elevated ALT group was 3.020 (95% CI: 2.496-3.653). Positive relationship for MetS was also observed in elevated AST group (OR: 1.689, 95% CI: 1.314-2.171), but within the reference range, the AST level was not associated with MetS. Conclusions: Serum ALT level, even within the reference range, was significantly associated with MetS. However, only elevated AST levels above 40 U/L was positively associated with MetS. Within the reference range, we did not find a relationship between AST levels and MetS.

BackgroundPediatric obesity has become a global public health problem. Data on the lifestyle behaviors, dietary habits, and familial factors of overweight and obese children and adolescents are limited. The present study aims to compare health-related factors among normal-weight, overweight, and obese Chinese children and adolescents.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study consisted of 4262 children and adolescents aged 5–18 years old from rural areas of the northeast China. Anthropometric measurements and self-reported information on health-related variables, such as physical activities, sleep duration, dietary habits, family income, and recognition of weight status from the views of both children and parents, were collected by trained personnel.ResultsThe prevalence rates of overweight and obesity were 15.3 and 6.4%, respectively. Compared to girls, boys were more commonly overweight (17.5% vs. 12.9%) and obese (9.5% vs. 3.1%). Approximately half of the parents with an overweight or obese child reported that they failed to recognize their child’s excess weight status, and 65% of patients with an overweight child reported that they would not take measures to decrease their child’s body weight. Obese children and adolescents were more likely to be nonsnackers [odds ratio (OR): 1.348; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.039–1.748] and to have a family income of 2000 CNY or more per month (OR: 1.442; 95% CI: 1.045–1.99) and less likely to sleep longer (≥7.5 h) (OR: 0.475; 95% CI: 0.31–0.728) than the normal-weight participants.ConclusionsOur study revealed a high prevalence of overweight and obesity in a large Chinese pediatric population. Differences in sleep duration, snacking, family income, and parental recognition of children’s weight status among participants in different weight categories were observed, which should be considered when planning prevention and treatment programs for pediatric obesity.