Reference Values for Serum Leptin Levels in Children, Adolescents, and Adults With Normal Weight, Overweight, and Obesity
Authors' conclusion
We present the first reference curves for leptin concentrations across the entire age and weight range. An online tool and an R package for calculating leptin z-scores that are specific to age, sex, TS, and BMI (or BMI-SDS) are now available for clinical and research use at https://leptin.science.
Study context
- Population
- Children, adolescents and adults aged 0–75 years with normal weight to extreme obesity, 16 European cohorts
- Participants
- 12,629 children16 European cohorts
- Outcome
- Reference ranges for serum leptin concentration stratified by sex, TS and weight status
Methodological details16 European cohorts, generalized additive models for location, shape, and scale, Online tool and R package for age-, sex-, Tanner stage (TS)- and body mass index (BMI)-specific leptin z-scores available at https://leptin.science
- 16 European cohorts
- Generalized additive models for location, shape, and scale
- Online tool and R package for age-, sex-, TS- and BMI-specific leptin z-scores available at https://leptin.science
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Serum leptin reference curves
- Boys: leptin increased between ages 6 and 12, declined after age 12
- Girls: leptin increased until age 15, with BMI-SDS dependent trajectories thereafter
- Leptin generally higher in girls than boys, except boys aged 9 to 15 years with BMI-SDS > 3
- Adults: women consistently had higher leptin across all BMI categories
- Men: leptin decreased until mid-20s for BMI 30 kg/m² and until age 50 for BMI 40 kg/m², stabilizing thereafter
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Original publication
Reference Values for Serum Leptin Levels in Children, Adolescents, and Adults With Normal Weight, Overweight, and Obesity. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. Published 5 August 2025. doi:10.
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