Inflammation and Healthy Lifestyle Choices Influence Cardiometabolic Risks in African American Women

Objectives: Individuals of African origin in Europe and the Caribbean have a lower prevalence of coronary heart disease (CHD) than do Europeans and European Americans; however, African Americans, especially women, do not possess the same low CHD prevalence as Africans. As such, this study was designed to determine whether highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and fitness (V˙O) cluster with other cardiometabolic risks (CMRs) or whether their influence is independent of other CMRs in African American women.

Methods: Fifty African American women were compared on fasting glucose, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, blood pressure, and adiposity-based hsCRP classifications (low <1, group 1; moderate >1, group 2). Participants were obese but metabolically healthy.

Results: Oxygen uptake (V˙O) was correlated with systolic blood pressure, and percentage of fat in group 1. V˙O was related to systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and percentage of fat, and hsCRP was related to triglycerides, and percentage of fat was related to diastolic blood pressure in group 2. These data indicate that CMRs are inversely related to V˙O at moderate hsCRP values in African American women. Inflammation and obesity are relatively independent of other CMRs.

Conclusions: Inflammation along with sedentary lifestyles may contribute to the disparity observed for CHD morbidity and mortality in African American women. Adding the CMR profile may improve the prediction of CHD in African American women.