Body mass index and height over three generations: evidence from the Lifeways cross-generational cohort study

Abstract

BackgroundObesity and its measure of body mass index are strongly determined by parental body size. Debate continues as to whether both parents contribute equally to offspring body mass which is key to understanding the aetiology of the disease. The aim of this study was to use cohort data from three generations of one family to examine the relative maternal and paternal associations with offspring body mass index and how these associations compare with family height to demonstrate evidence of genetic or environmental cross-generational transmission.Methods669 of 1082 families were followed up in 2007/8 as part of the Lifeways study, a prospective observational cross-generation linkage cohort. Height and weight were measured in 529 Irish children aged 5 to 7 years and were self-reported by parents and grandparents. All adults provided information on self-rated health, education status, and indicators of income, diet and physical activity. Associations between the weight, height, and body mass index of family members were examined with mixed models and heritability estimates computed using linear regression analysis.ResultsSelf-rated health was associated with lower BMI for all family members, as was age for children. When these effects were accounted for evidence of familial associations of BMI from one generation to the next was more apparent in the maternal line. Heritability estimates were higher (h2 = 0.40) for mother-offspring pairs compared to father-offspring pairs (h2 = 0.22). In the previous generation, estimates were higher between mothers-parents (h2 = 0.54-0.60) but not between fathers-parents (h2 = -0.04-0.17). Correlations between mother and offspring across two generations remained significant when modelled with fixed variables of socioeconomic status, health, and lifestyle. A similar analysis of height showed strong familial associations from maternal and paternal lines across each generation.ConclusionsThis is the first family cohort study to report an enduring association between mother and offspring BMI over three generations. The evidence of BMI transmission over three generations through the maternal line in an observational study corroborates the findings of animal studies. A more detailed analysis of geno and phenotypic data over three generations is warranted to understand the nature of this maternal-offspring relationship.

Longitudinal follow-up of the relationship between dietary intake and growth and development in the Lifeways cross-generation cohort study 2001–2013

“…The study is one of very few containing data on grandparents of both lineages, with at least one grandparent recruited at baseline. A summary of publications related to diet and cross-generation transmission to date for the Lifeways cohort study is given in Table 3 (107)(108)(109)(110)(111)(112)(113)(114)(115)(116)(117)(118)(119)(120)(121) . These analyses in this cohort have been consistent in showing an influence on health outcomes at different time points of lifestyle factors including diet and of cross-generation and familial associations.…”

“…A number of analyses have been undertaken across the generations of participating families related to the wave when children now averaged age 5 years (116)(117)(118) . Although the responses were received for just 669 of 1126 women originally recruited and not all of these had complete examination data, there was no significant difference in baseline maternal BMI in this sweep's participants compared with that of non-participants, although these mothers were older on average than nonparticipants.…”

“…Viljoen et al (115) Parent-reported asthma, child aged 5 years Strong social pattern and inverse association with maternal vegetable intake during pregnancy 10 Murrin et al (116) BMI and height in three generations, child aged 5 years…”

Childhood Cardiometabolic Outcomes of Maternal Obesity During Pregnancy

“…6,7 Previous studies examining the strengths of associations of both maternal and paternal prepregnancy BMI with childhood outcomes have mainly focused on childhood BMI and have reported inconsistent results. 5,[8][9][10][11][23][24][25] Most studies reported no differences in the magnitude of parental associations with offspring BMI. [8][9][10][11]24 However, in childhood, BMI might not be an appropriate measure of fat mass.…”

Maternal oral bacterial levels predict early childhood caries development

“…M ultiple intergenerational connections have been observed between maternal conditions and child health outcomes: from body mass index (Murrin et al, 2012) to age of menarche (Deardorff et al, 2012). Consequently, poor health may be transmitted from parents to children, conceivably perpetuating health disparities and providing reason to consider intergenerational determinants in disease prevention.…”