The authors of this study found a continuous downward secular trend of age at menarche for Chinese girls in both urban and rural areas born from 1973 to 2004. Among all variables, urban residency, BMI, and energy intake are negatively associated with age at menarche, whereas carbohydrate intake is positively associated with age at menarche.

For females, the risk of hyperglycemia was higher for famine-exposed than not exposed cohort (odds ratios [OR] 1.34 and 95% confidence intervals [CIs]: 1.34 [1.04-1.74], 1.48 [1.15-1.90], 1.38 [1.06-1.79], and 1.57 [1.25-1.98] for fetal, early, middle, and late childhood exposure, respectively), and this association was even stronger in female participants who lived in rural areas before the age of 16 years. In males, the risk of T2DM was lower for the early and late childhood exposure than no exposure cohorts (OR [95% CIs]: 0.65 [0.49-0.86] and 0.74 [0.56-0.98], respectively). [Correction added on 23 July 2018, after first online publication: Parts of the above 'Results' section have been corrected to interchange the citation of the words 'late' and 'early'.] CONCLUSION: Exposure to famine during early life can increase the risk of hyperglycemia in female adults, but may decrease the risk of T2DM in males.

No abstract

Background: It is unclear whether the incidence of neural tube defects (NTDs) is

Background Several studies have revealed conflicting results regarding the relationship between serum uric acid (SUA) and blood glucose concentrations. The aim of this study was to identify the shape of the curve between SUA and either fasting plasma glucose (FPG) or HbA1c in diabetic and non‐diabetic participants. Methods This cross‐sectional study of the relationship between SUA and diabetes and non‐diabetes was conducted in 10 266 participants. Data from the national baseline survey of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS; 2011‐12) were used. Restrictive cubic spline regression and two piecewise linear regression models were used to detect non‐linear trends and calculate the slope of each segment. Results After adjusting for all confounding factors in all subjects, an L‐shaped relationship was found between FPG and SUA in males (β2 = 3.47, P < 0.01) and females (β2 = 5.84, P < 0.01), as well as between HbA1c and SUA in males (β2 = 0.10, P = 0.03) and females (β2 = 0.12, P = 0.02). In non‐diabetic individuals, there was a positive linear correlation between FPG and SUA in females (β = 0.62, P = 0.02). After a diagnosis of diabetes, a negative linear relationship was found between SUA and blood glucose in males, and a nearly L‐shaped curve was found in females. Conclusions An L‐shaped association was found between SUA and blood glucose in both genders. Stratified analysis revealed an L‐shaped curve only in diabetic females. Further studies are warranted to investigate the mechanisms of the association between uric acid and blood glucose levels.