Irish children as young as 10 are showing ‘significant risk factors' for heart disease, a new study has shown.

According to scientists from Tallaght Hospital and Trinity College Dublin (TCD), the clinical signs of heart disease are not evident until adulthood. However, many of the risk factors for the disease ‘have their roots in early childhood'.

They decided to investigate this further by examining the physical activity levels and the incidence of heart disease risk factors in 102 primary school children in Dublin. All were aged between 10 and 12.

Risk factors included overweight/obesity, blood pressure and fitness levels.

The study found that at least one in four of the children were already overweight or obese. Furthermore, while the children had relatively good fitness levels, physical activity levels were low.

Primary school children are currently recommended to get at least 60 minutes of physical activity per day. However less than half (46%) of the children in this study were achieving this. Girls were less likely than boys to hit the 60 minute target.

Meanwhile, the scientists also found that five of the children had higher than normal blood pressure levels, while six children had high cholesterol levels. Sixteen children displayed a ‘clustering' of heart disease risk factors, with the biggest risk among those who were inactive.

"We have shown that in children as young as 10 years, significant cardiovascular disease risk factors exist. Furthermore, one in six children showed evidence of clustering of these risk factors. Of particular note was the greater risk of clustering in children exercising for less than 30 minutes per day," the scientists said.

They added that as heart disease risk factors are known to continue into adulthood, these findings ‘provide support for preventative programs aimed at children, in particular targeting young girls where participation in regular physical activity is low'.

Details of these findings are published in the Irish Medical Journal.

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