The wrist size of overweight or obese children and teens may reveal those at increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease, a new study says.

According to Reuters, Italian researchers measured the wrist circumference of 477 overweight or obese youngsters, average age 10, alongside their insulin levels and amount of insulin resistance. Findings showed that wrist circumference accounted for 12 to 17 percent of the total variance of insulin resistance.

“This is the first evidence that wrist circumference is highly correlated to evidence of insulin resistance,” senior author Dr. Raffaella Buzzetti, of Sapienza University of Rome, said in a journal news release. “Wrist circumference is easily measured, and if our work is confirmed by future studies, wrist circumference could someday be used to predict insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease risk.”

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