| Learning Objective #1: Discuss study findings concerning the presence of cardiovascular risk in preschool children | |||
| Learning Objective #2: Discuss implications for health education and behavior change targeted to preschoolers and their parents |
Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify cardiovascular risk factors in low-income preschool children.
Design: Descriptive.
Population, Sample, Setting: 205 low-income preschool children, aged 3-5 years, were recruited at faculty practice, Head Start, and Child Find facilities.
Concept and Variables Studied Together: The concept of interest was early identification of cardiovascular risks. Variables studied were: family history of cardiovascular disease, percent calories from fat, hours of inactivity, exposure to environmental tobacco smoke, cholesterol level, blood pressure, and body mass index.
Methods: Parents completed a multi-generational cardiovascular health history and a 24-hour parent/child dietary recall. Physical assessment data were obtained from the child during the health exam.
Findings: Of the 205 children, 61% reported ethnicity as Latino/Hispanic, 31.7% non-Hispanic white, 1.0 % non-Hispanic black, 3.9% Asian and 2.4% mixed race. The number of males (50.8%) and females (49.3%) was similar. Only 18 children (8.8%) showed no cardiovascular risk factors. At least one modifiable risk factor was present in 185 (90.2 %) children. There were 52 (25.4%) children with a BMI over the 85th percentile; 44 (21.5%) children with a systolic or diastolic blood pressure over the 90th percentile for gender, age and height; 110 (53.7%) children with a dietary fat intake of >30%; 77 (37.6%) children who watched TV or played video games more than 2 hours per day; and 48 (23.4%) children were exposed to passive tobacco smoke.
Conclusions: The presence of cardiovascular risk factors in almost 90% of healthy preschoolers has important implications for the delivery of well-child care to vulnerable populations. It provides evidence to support testing of interventions to effect change in health behaviors and status.
Implications: Study findings suggest abundant opportunity for early intervention in an attempt to reduce health disparities nationally and globally.
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