Obesity and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: From Childhood to Adulthood

Obesity has become a major epidemic in the 21st century. It increases the risk of dyslipidemia, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes, which are known cardiometabolic risk factors and components of the metabolic syndrome. Although overt cardiovascular (CV) diseases such as stroke or myocardial infarction are the domain of adulthood, it is evident that the CV continuum begins very early in life. Recognition of risk factors and early stages of CV damage, at a time when these processes are still reversible, and the development of prevention strategies are major pillars in reducing CV morbidity and mortality in the general population. In this review, we will discuss the role of well-known but also novel risk factors linking obesity and increased CV risk from prenatal age to adulthood, including the role of perinatal factors, diet, nutrigenomics, and nutri-epigenetics, hyperuricemia, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and cardiorespiratory fitness. The importance of 'tracking' of these risk factors on adult CV health is highlighted and the economic impact of childhood obesity as well as preventive strategies are discussed

Psychosocial and environmental risk factors of obesity and hypertension in children and adolescents—a literature overview

Childhood obesity has become a worldwide epidemic in the 21st century. Its treatment is challenging and often ineffective, among others due to complex, often not obvious causes. Awareness of the existence and meaning of psychosocial and environmental risk factors seems to be an essential element in the prevention and treatment of obesity and its complications, especially arterial hypertension. In this review, we will discuss the role of that risk factors linking obesity and increased cardiovascular disorders including the role of nutritional factors (including the role of unhealthy diet, inadequate hydration), unhealthy behaviors (e.g. smoking, alcohol and drugs, sedentary behavior, low physical activity, disrupted circadian rhythms, sleep disorders, screen exposure), unfavorable social factors (such as dysfunctional family, bullying, chronic stress, mood disorders, depression, urbanization, noise, and environmental pollution), and finally differences in cardiovascular risk in girls and boy

Supramolecular Polylactides by the Cooperative Interaction of the End Groups and Stereocomplexation

The controlled ring-opening polymerization of l-lactide and d-lactide using 2-aminopyridine (AP), isocytosine (IC), uridine (U), and 2-ureido-4­[<i>1H</i>]-pyrimidinone (UPy-OH) initiators with stannous­(II) octanoate as catalyst leads to polylactides (AP-PLA-OH, IC-PLA-OH, U-PLA-OH, and UPy-PLA-OH), which are capable of forming strong hydrogen bonds and consequently self-assemble. By means of “¹H NMR titration”, the association constant (<i>K</i>_a) was determined for chosen model system composed of polylactides with uridine and aminopyridine end groups. The coupling reaction of UPy-PLA-OH with diisocyanates was used to obtain PLLA and PDLA with UPy end groups on both sides of the chain: UPy-PLLA-UPy and UPy-PDLA-UPy. The SEC analysis of the telechelic UPy-PLA-UPy revealed the presence of a supramolecular polymer with a high-molecular-weight fraction (<i>M</i>_n ≈ 70 000 g/mol) compared with the molar mass of the starting dimer (UPy-PLA-OH, <i>M</i>_n ≈ 7000 g/mol), which confirms the strong complementary interactions of the end groups. Moreover, the influence of the end groups of enantiomeric PLAs on their thermal properties and morphology was investigated. Additionally, the influence of the modified PLA enantiomers on the stereocomplexation phenomenon was analyzed. It was observed that stereocomplexes prepared from PLAs with UPy or U end groups on one chain end lead to the formation of microspheres during precipitation from <i>N</i>-methylpyrrolidone into methanol. The microscopic analysis of the telechelic UPy-PLLA-UPy/UPy-PDLA-UPy stereocomplex resulting from the precipitation from chloroform into methanol revealed a fibrous morphology. The probable mechanism of formation of the hierarchical structure of this stereocomplex material, which can be related to the specific geometry of the enantiomeric chains (mainly in a parallel arrangement), was proposed