Cholesterol levels down in kids, says CDC
CDC said that cholesterol levels in children have gone down despite rising obesity rates.
Cholesterol levels have decreased in American children, said the CDC in data released Tuesday.
Officials said that between 1988 and 2010 the total rate of cholesterol in children between the ages of six and 19 reduced from 11 to eight percent.
The Associated Press noted that despite the decrease in cholesterol rates, obesity has remained steady in that age group.
Indeed, obesity rates among children in the US have tripled since 1980, said WebMd.
Yet, officials were surprised by the positive news.
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"I think this is the first time we are seeing a real decline," said Sarah de Ferranti, director of preventive cardiology at Children's Hospital Boston, reported Reuters.
"The changes aren't big, but if you look at the population level this is good news."
It is still unclear why cholesterol is decreasing while obesity is still an epidemic among American children.
ABC News said that researchers speculate that the reason for the fall in cholesterol is the decline in trans fats in packaged foods.
The research will appear this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association