STUDY FINDS PACIFIC CHILDREN STRUGGLING WITH MICRONUTRIENT INTAKE AND OBESITY

Children ages two to eight years across 11 Pacific jurisdictions (Alaska, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawai'i, Marshall Islands, and Palau) are not meeting daily recommended intakes for key micronutrients, either consuming too much or too little. That discovery was published recently in a study led by scientists at the University of Hawai'i (UH) at Mānoa. The research team also found associations between children's micronutrient intake, obesity, and the presence of acanthosis nigricans, a skin condition that is linked to insulin resistance. 

"Nutritional intake during childhood can shape health and well-being throughout life," said Lucia Seale, associate professor at the Pacific Biosciences Research Center in the UH Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology and co-lead author of the study along with Ashley Yamanaka, assistant director and assistant researcher at the Children's Healthy Living Center of Excellence (CHL Center) based in the UH Mānoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR). "Although excess intake of macronutrients, such as carbohydrates and fats, is considered the main driver of obesity development, micronutrients, such as minerals and vitamins, can positively or negatively affect the processes that lead to obesity. So, understanding the micronutrient intake relationship to childhood obesity can guide precision interventions to address nutritional needs throughout the United States–Affiliated Pacific (USAP) region."

Digging into the data

Micronutrient intake of adults living in the USAP region, has been investigated in previous studies. However, the association between micronutrient intake with nutritional status markers, such as obesity, among USAP children had not previously been evaluated, despite the crucial role of vitamins and minerals in health and the potential risks of both deficiency and excess. 

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2025-03-06T14:03:59Z