The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Apr 8, 2008
A study from researchers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill suggests that children who are not physically active are at increased risk for heart disease in adolescence, United Press International reports. Published in the April issue of Dynamic Medicine, the study was designed to assess the relationship between physical activity and metabolic syndrome, which is defined as a clustering of various cardiovascular disease risk factors. Researchers collected data on physical activity, aerobic fitness, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure and lipids for 389 children ages 7 to 10 across seven years.