One million teens at serious risk for heart disease later in life

• About 1 million U.S. teenagers have high blood pressure, high blood-sugar levels or other conditions that may put them at risk of heart disease later in life, according to an American Heart Association report.
• The number, which represents about 4.2 percent of the 12- to 19-year-olds in the U.S., refers to adolescents who have metabolic syndrome, a combination of three or more conditions such as abnormal blood lipids, high glucose, high blood pressure and being overweight or obese.
• Almost two-third of the adolescents with metabolic syndrome were overweight.
• Childhood risk factors such as obesity can lead to heart disease and other medical conditions, including diabetes, in adulthood, Robert Eckel, an endocrinologist at the University of Colorado Health Science Center and president-elect of the American Heart Association, said in an interview.
• ``The majority view among scientists is that obesity precedes or drives the other risk factors that can lead to heart disease or diabetes,'' Eckel said.
• Cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the U.S., claiming 927,400 lives in 2002, according to the Heart Association.
• About 700,000 Americans are expected to have a heart attack this year.
• ``To halt this trend involves a whole complex of interactions, including the family, the school system and the food industry,'' Eckel said.
• Metabolic syndrome among teenagers increases the risk for Type 2, or adult-onset, diabetes.
• About 14 million adults in the U.S. had diagnosed diabetes in 2002 and as many as 6 million more people may have undiagnosed diabetes, the report said.
• The prevalence of diagnosed diabetes among adults has risen by 61 percent since 1990, the Heart Association said.