Abstract:

Introduction: Leptin levels are related to the amount of body fat, appetite and energy expenditure, while the body mass index (BMI) is the most widely used anthropometric parameter in the identification of nutritional status due to its ease of measurement and low cost. Objective: To analyze leptin concentrations (LEP) and its correlation with total body mass (TBM) and BMI in overweight adults. Materials and Methods: cross-sectional descriptive research with 50 volunteers (27.7 ± 5.10 years), of both sexes (25 men and 25 women), regular practitioners of physical exercise, submitted to anthropometric assessment (total body mass and height) and collection of blood samples after 12h fasting for analysis of serum levels of LEP by the radioimmunoassay method. Descriptive statistics, the Shapiro-Wilk normality test, Student's t test for independent samples and the calculation of Pearson's Correlation Coefficient with significance of p<0.05 were performed. Results: LEP concentrations were significantly higher (p=0.0001) in female volunteers (26.04 ± 9.62 ng/dL) compared to males (5.12 ± 1.01 ng /dL). No significant correlation was observed between the variables LEP x TBM or LEP x BMI for both sexes. Conclusions: Body composition assessment methods that specifically quantify body fat are needed to investigate its association with blood leptin concentrations.

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