Associations between early body mass index trajectories and later metabolic risk factors in European children: the IDEFICS study

Abstract

Faster growth seems to be a common factor in several hypotheses relating early life exposures to subsequent health. This study aims to investigate the association between body mass index (BMI) trajectories during infancy/childhood and later metabolic risk in order to identify sensitive periods of growth affecting health. In a first step, BMI trajectories of 3301 European children that participated in the multi-centre Identification and Prevention of Dietary and Lifestyle-induced Health Effects in Children and Infants (IDEFICS) study were modelled using linear-spline mixed-effects models. The estimated random coefficients indicating initial subject-specific BMI and rates of change in BMI over time were used as exposure variables in a second step and related to a metabolic syndrome (MetS) score and its single components based on conditional regression models (mean age at outcome assessment: 8.5 years). All exposures under investigation, i.e. BMI at birth, rates of BMI change during infancy (0 to <9 months), early childhood (9 months to <6 years) and later childhood (≥6 years) as well as current BMI z-score were significantly associated with the later MetS score. Associations were strongest for the rate of BMI change in early childhood (1.78 [1.66; 1.90]; β estimate and 99 % confidence interval) and current BMI z-score (1.16 [0.96; 1.38]) and less pronounced for BMI at birth (0.62 [0.47; 0.78]). Results slightly differed with regard to the single metabolic factors. Starting from birth rapid BMI growth, especially in the time window of 9 months to <6 years, is significantly related to later metabolic risk in children. Much of the associations of early BMI growth may further be mediated through the effects on subsequent BMI growth.

Children's stress‐related reports and stress biomarkers interact in their association with metabolic syndrome risk

“…As a result, each component had the same weight in the total score, and higher scores indicate a less favourable metabolic profile. This MetS demonstrates a clear association with anthropometry (Bornhorst et al, ).…”

Critical periods and growth patterns from fetal life onwards associated with childhood insulin levels

“…In a study of 1124 children from England and Wales, both a lower birthweight and a higher childhood ponderal index were associated with higher fasting and postload insulin levels at 10-11 years, with stronger effect estimates for the childhood ponderal index [25]. Furthermore, a recent study among 3301 European children with a mean age of 8.5 years showed that rapid BMI growth between 9 months and 6 years was related to a higher risk of insulin resistance [27]. In our current study, growth during fetal life was not associated with childhood insulin or C-peptide levels, independent of growth in other time intervals.…”

Prevalence of severe/morbid obesity and other weight status and anthropometric reference standards in Spanish preschool children: The PREFIT project

“…impaired glucose tolerance and diabetes) in adults. 35,36 Waist circumference is a well-known estimate of abdominal fat in adults, but little has been studied in children in this regard. 18 In this sense, Brambilla et al 37 assessed the association between waist circumference and visceral and subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue measured by magnetic resonance imaging in children from 7 to 16 years old.…”