Heritability of Children's Dietary Intakes: A Population-Based Twin Study in China

Abstract

Background: Despite evidence for some genetic control of dietary intake in adults, there is little evidence of how genetic factors influence children's dietary patterns. Objective: To estimate heritability of dietary intake in twin children from China and test if genetic effects on dietary intakes vary by the children's socioeconomic status (SES). Methods: A sample of 622 twins (162 monozygotic and 149 dizygotic pairs; 298 boys and 324 girls aged 7-15 years) was recruited in South China. Dietary intakes were assessed using a validated 145-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Pooled and sex-specific dietary patterns were identified using factor analysis. Heritability was estimated using structural equation models. Results: Heritable components differed by gender and for nutrients and food groups; and estimated heritability of dietary patterns was generally greater in girls than boys. In boys, estimated heritabilities ranged from 18.8% (zinc) to 58.4% (fat) for nutrients; and for food group, 1.1% (Western fast foods) to 65.8% (soft drinks). In girls, these estimates ranged from 5.1% (total energy) to 38.7% (percentage of energy from fat) for nutrients, and 12.6% (eggs) to 94.6% (Western fast foods) for food groups. Factor analysis identified five food patterns: vegetables and fruits, fried and fast foods, beverages, snacks and meats. Maternal education and family income were positively associated with higher heritabilities for intake of meat, fried, and fast food. Conclusions: Genetic influence on dietary intakes differed by gender, nutrients, food groups, and dietary patterns among Chinese twins. Parental SES characteristics modified the estimated genetic influence.

Obesity and eating behavior from the perspective of twin and genetic research

“…Since the number of twins was low in many studies, only pooled results for males and females are presented because otherwise the confidence intervals would have been too wide to obtain meaningful results. Studies including young UK children at the average age of 21 months (Pimpin et al, 2013) and 7-15-years-old Chinese children (Li et al, 2016) found clear evidence that in addition to genetic factors, shared environmental factors also had an influence on total energy intake. On the other hand, a study of Canadian 9-year-old children (Dubois et al, 2013) and Danish adults (Hasselbalch et al, 2008b) found only evidence on the role of genetic but not shared environmental factors.…”

Prioritization of Variants for Investigation of Genotype-Directed Nutrition in Human Superpopulations

“…Other more focused studies impart further support. The heritability of food intake in the Chinese population ranges from 19%–95% depending on types of food and gender [3]. A 12%–24% heritability of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) consumption was identified by a meta-analysis of 17 cohorts [4,5].…”