Nutritional status and body fat distribution in children and adolescentes with cystic fibrosis

Abstract

Objective: assessing the nutritional status and body fat distribution in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis. Method: Fifty-six (56) 8-18 year old patients were assessed for fat distribution by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry, for nutritional status by height/age, and for body mass index to age and dietary intake by 24-hour dietary recall. Results: Approximately 50% of the sample showed adequate nutritional status. Most of it showed inadequate caloric and lipid intake. BMI/age was the nutritional indicator that best showed the increased percentage of trunk fat, android/gynecoidratio and trunk fat/total fat ratio. Patients with Pancreatic Insufficiency and eutrophic individuals showed higher median android/gynecoidratio. Conclusion: Increased abdominal adiposity was evidenced by DXA. The BMI did not identify decreased lean body mass. However, when body mass was high, it was significant for abdominal adiposity. The anthropometric assessment of patients with cystic fibrosis should be associated with body composition and body fat distribution to obtain an earlier malnutrition and cardiometabolic risk factor diagnosis.