Long-term effects of birth weight and breastfeeding duration on inflammation in early adulthood

Abstract

Chronic inflammation is a potentially important physiological mechanism linking early life environments and health in adulthood. Elevated concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP)-a key biomarker of inflammation-predict increased cardiovascular and metabolic disease risk in adulthood, but the developmental factors that shape the regulation of inflammation are not known. We investigated birth weight and breastfeeding duration in infancy as predictors of CRP in young adulthood in a large representative cohort study (n ¼ 6951). Birth weight was significantly associated with CRP in young adulthood, with a negative association for birth weights 2.8 kg and higher. Compared with individuals not breastfed, CRP concentrations were 20.1%, 26.7%, 29.6% and 29.8% lower among individuals breastfed for less than three months, three to six months, 6-12 months and greater than 12 months, respectively. In sibling comparison models, higher birth weight was associated with lower CRP for birth weights above 2.5 kg, and breastfeeding greater than or equal to three months was significantly associated with lower CRP. Efforts to promote breastfeeding and improve birth outcomes may have clinically relevant effects on reducing chronic inflammation and lowering risk for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases in adulthood.

Social and physical environments early in development predict DNA methylation of inflammatory genes in young adulthood

“…Individuals born at lower birth weight, and infants who are breastfed for shorter durations, have higher concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP)-a key biomarker of inflammation-as adults (15)(16)(17)(18)(19). Higher levels of microbial exposure in infancy are associated with reduced levels of chronic inflammation in adulthood (18,20), consistent with broader human and animal model literatures showing that microbial exposures during sensitive periods of immune development have lasting beneficial effects on the regulation of inflammation (21)(22)(23).…”

“…Prior research, in a wide range of ecological settings, suggests that nutritional, microbial, and psychosocial exposures during sensitive periods of immune development have lasting effects on inflammation (10,16,18,19). In this study, we use a prospective design to link these exposures with patterns of DNAm in inflammatory genes in young adulthood, providing evidence that DNAm may be an important ΔBeta value −log10 P−value Fig.…”

Insufficient physical activity increases cardiovascular risk in women with low birth mass

“…These results were further enhanced by the results compared to siblings who differed by BBM and breastfeeding period. A lower birth weight and shorter duration of breastfeeding were associated with elevated CRP in young adults [12]. Most of the studies available in the literature confirm the existence of a correlation between hsCRP and birth weight, regardless of the race, body composition and different somatic prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors [23,28,29].…”

The Effects of the Environment During the Prenatal and Perinatal Period for Early Growth and Development of the Child

“…Danas svi znamo da dojenje i porođajna težina imaju velike efekte na zdravlje djeteta decenijama poslije. Oboje značajno smanjuju rizik od hronične inflamacije vezane za kardiovaskularne i metaboličke bolesti (26). Čak nam i MRI studije (magnetna rezonanca) danas mogu jasno pokazati razlike u razvoju mozga kod dojenčeta koje se hrani formulom i dojenčeta koje doji.…”