A third of 7 million children in the US who have fatty livers also have pre diabetes or diabetes, says study
Posted on: 04/Aug/2016 9:34:13 AM
A new study says that about seven million children in the U.S. have fatty livers, and nearly a third of those kids also have pre diabetes or diabetes. The study was conducted by researchers at the Fatty Liver Clinic at Rady Children`s Hospital in San Diego. The findings were published in the journal JAMA Paediatrics.
According to the researchers, So-called nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD, is one of the biggest risk factors for the development of type 2 diabetes in children. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is approximately 1 in 2,500 in the general population, 1 in 200 in children with obesity, and 1 in 15 in children with NAFLD.
NAFLD can cause scarring in the liver and can lead to liver failure and the need for a transplant. It may be related to genetics, obesity and some medications. It can be treated but not cured. NAFLD and abnormal sugar metabolism usually coincide in adults. People with NAFLD who have type 2 diabetes have a higher risk for a more severe form of liver disease called nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, or NASH, which carries the highest risk for cirrhosis, end stage liver disease, and liver cancer.
For the current study, 675 kids took part. All were under the age of 18 years. And all had NAFLD. The average body mass index, or BMI, was 32, above the clinical cutoff for obesity of 30. Body mass index, a measure of weight in relation to height, is calculated differently for children than for adults. An online calculator is here: nccd.cdc.gov/dnpabmi/calculator.aspx.
The data showed that twenty-three percent of the kids with NAFLD had pre diabetes and almost seven percent had type 2 diabetes. Girls with NAFLD were five times as likely as boys to have type 2 diabetes. More than 40 percent of kids with type 2 diabetes also had NASH, compared to 34 percent of kids with pre diabetes and 22 percent of those with normal blood sugar.
Experts say, When the liver gets fatty, some of its metabolic pathways are progressively impaired, including insulin sensitivity. Currently, treatment for NAFLD involves optimising lifestyle including nutrition, physical activity, and mental well-being, he said. Based on this study, kids with NAFLD should also have blood sugar tests and be monitored for progression of liver disease, diabetes and the consequences of both, he said.
Speaking about this, the researchers of the study said, Although children with NAFLD overall are typically boys, girls with NAFLD are more likely to have diabetes. Special attention should be given to children with the combination of type 2 diabetes and NASH, as they are at particularly high risk for premature morbidity and mortality.
