Diabetes risk in kids 'ups risk for weak bones'

Washington, August 17 (ANI): A new study has found that children who are at risk for diabetes before they reach puberty are also at risk for weak bones.

The Medical College of Georgia study is the first to suggest the association between weaker bones and type 2 diabetes risk in children.

The study of 140 overweight children age 7-11 who got little regular exercise found that the 30 percent with signs of poor blood sugar regulation had 4-5 percent less bone mass, a measure of bone strength, said Dr. Norman Pollock, bone biologist at MCG's Georgia Prevention Institute.

"This finding provides the first clue linking childhood obesity to skeletal fractures," said Pollock, first author on the study.

"While overweight children may have more bone mass than normal-weight kids, it may not be big or strong enough to compensate for their larger size."

In this study, higher amounts of visceral fat were associated with lower bone mass while more body fat overall was associated with higher bone mass.

"Taken together, it seems that excessive abdominal fat may play a key role linking pre-diabetes to lower bone mass," Pollock said.

The findings appear to be another wakeup call for parents about the potential lifelong consequences of an overweight childhood. And increased physical activity might be a relatively simple fix.

The study is published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. (ANI)