An exercise program for obese children can reduce early complications that can eventually lead to heart disease, researchers found.

Those in the program had significant reductions in blood pressure after three months, and significant reductions in arterial stiffness after six months, Nathalie J. Farpour-Lambert, MD, of University Hospitals of Geneva in Switzerland, and colleagues reported in the Dec. 15/22 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, and in a press conference here.

“These changes are independent of body weight or fat reduction,” the researchers wrote, acknowledging that the program also had beneficial effects on whole-body and abdominal fat, fat-free mass, and cardio-respiratory fitness.

Childhood obesity has been associated with future disease risk. Hypertension and early signs of atherosclerosis develop before puberty in heavy kids, and researchers say this underscores the need for strategies to prevent the progression of heart disease in this population.

So to determine whether physical activity had an impact on systemic blood pressure and early markers of atherosclerosis in this population, the researchers conducted a three-month randomized controlled trial with a modified crossover design.

A total of 44 obese children who hadn’t yet reached puberty were randomly assigned to an exercise or control group. An additional 22 lean children were used for a baseline comparison.