Elevated Serum IL-6, IL-8, MCP-1, CRP, and IFN-γ Levels in 10- to 11-year-old Boys with Increased BMI

Background/aims: Many inflammation parameters are associated with obesity, but few comparable data are found in youth. This study aims to characterize the differences in serum levels of 13 biochemical inflammatory markers between boys with increased BMI and boys with normal BMI, and examine the relationships between inflammation markers, skinfold thicknesses, and body composition.

Participants/methods: The participants were 38 boys (BMI above 85th percentile) and 38 boys (normal BMI) at the age of 10-11 years. Measurements included BMI, 9 skinfold thicknesses, waist and hip circumferences, and total body and trunk fat mass and percentage as indices of obesity, fasting insulin, glucose, and serum concentrations of IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, VEGF, IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-1α, IL-1β, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), epidermal growth factor, and CRP.

Results: Overweight boys (OWB) were taller and more frequently in puberty than normal-weight boys (NWB). Skinfold thicknesses and body composition parameters were higher in OWB. They had significantly higher serum IL-6, IL-8, IFN-γ, MCP-1, and CRP values compared to NWB.

Conclusions: Six of 13 measured biochemical markers were significantly increased in OWB, indicating that many low-grade inflammatory processes are already involved in the development of obesity in childhood.