Experts have discovered a simple blood test that could predict whether a child will develop diabetes and heart disease as an adult.
Danish scientists say offering the test in the early years could identify children at higher risk of obesity-related diseases and offer them faster treatment.
The experimental test looks for substances called lipids in the blood. The best-known blood lipid is cholesterol, which is linked to heart disease.
However, previous research by the same group found that there are thousands of different lipids, also known as fatty acids, with different functions in the body.
High levels of some of these lipids are linked to an increased risk of diabetes and heart disease, and the new study found that these levels begin to rise in childhood.
Danish scientists say offering the test in the early years could identify children at higher risk of obesity-related diseases and offer them faster treatment.
According to the latest UK figures, almost 4.3 million people were living with diabetes in 2021/22. And a further 850,000 people have diabetes and don’t know it at all, which is worrying because untreated type 2 diabetes can lead to complications such as heart disease and stroke.
The findings could help tackle the rising tide of type 2 diabetes among young people: recent data shows a 39 percent increase in those under 40 developing the blood sugar disease.
There is also an increasing number of fatal heart attacks in people under 75 years of age.
Dr Karolina Sulek, study author who conducted the analysis at the Steno Diabetes Centre in Copenhagen, said: ‘Early recognition of children at risk of these potentially fatal diseases is crucial.
‘The study provides strong evidence of the great need to control obesity and gives parents the confidence to intervene in their children’s lives more compassionately, helping them to lose weight.’
In the study, researchers assessed blood fat levels in 184 children with an average age of 11, all of whom were classified as overweight or obese.
They were all enrolled in the Holbaek model, a program for people with obesity, popular in Denmark.
Over a one-year follow-up, they found that their fatty acid levels were reduced, lowering their risk of diabetes and blood pressure.
Writing in the diary Natural medicineThey said the results showed that increased blood lipid levels can be reversed.
Dr Cristina Legido-Quigley, one of the study’s authors, based at King’s College London, said: ‘For decades, scientists have relied on a lipid classification system that has divided lipids into good and bad cholesterol.
‘But now, with a simple blood test, we can assess a much broader range of lipid molecules that could serve as vital early warning signals for the disease.
‘In the future, this has the potential to be a completely new way of assessing personal risk for disease, and by studying how to change lipid molecules in the body, we might even be able to prevent metabolic diseases such as diabetes altogether.’
Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body does not produce enough insulin or the insulin it produces does not work properly.
This hormone is necessary to reduce blood sugar levels.
Having high blood sugar levels over time can cause heart attacks and strokes, as well as problems with your eyes, kidneys, and feet.
Patients may need to review their diet, take daily medication and undergo regular check-ups.
Symptoms of this condition, which is diagnosed by a blood test, include excessive thirst, fatigue and the need to urinate more frequently, but many people have no symptoms.
Nearly 4.3 million people were living with diabetes in 2021/22, according to the latest UK figures.
About 90 percent of diabetes cases are type 2 diabetes, which is linked to obesity and usually diagnosed in middle age, rather than type 1 diabetes, a genetic condition that is usually identified early in life.
