Stronger influence of maternal than paternal obesity on infant and early childhood body mass index: the Fels Longitudinal Study

• Published in: Pediatric obesity 2013-06, Vol.8 (3), p.159-169
• Main Authors: Linabery, A. M., Nahhas, R. W., Johnson, W., Choh, A. C., Towne, B., Odegaard, A. O., Czerwinski, S. A., Demerath, E. W.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adiposity - genetics; Adult; Body Mass Index; Child of Impaired Parents - statistics & numerical data; Child, Preschool; Childrens health; European Continental Ancestry Group; Fathers; Female; growth and development; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; infants; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Mothers; Obesity; Obesity - epidemiology; Obesity - genetics; parents; Pediatrics; Prevalence; Surveys and Questionnaires; Time Factors; United States - epidemiology; Weight control
• ISSN: 2047-6302; 2047-6310
• DOI: 10.1111/j.2047-6310.2012.00100.x

Summary What is already known about this subject Excessive early childhood adiposity is a prevalent and increasing concern in many parts of the world. Parental obesity is one of the several factors previously associated with infant and early childhood weight, length and adiposity. Parental obesity represents a surrogate marker of the complex interplay among genetic, epigenetic and shared environmental factors, and is potentially modifiable. The relative contributions of maternal and paternal body mass index (BMI) to infant and early childhood growth, as well as the timing of such effects, have not been firmly established. What this study adds Utilizing serial infant measurements and growth curve modelling, this is the largest study to fully characterize and formally compare associations between maternal and paternal BMI and offspring growth across the entire infancy and early childhood period. Maternal obesity is a stronger determinant of offspring BMI than paternal obesity at birth and from 2 to 3 years of age, suggesting that prevention efforts focused particularly on maternal lifestyle and BMI may be important in reducing excess infant BMI. The observation that maternal BMI effects are not constant, but rather present at birth, wane and re‐emerge during late infancy, suggests that there is a window of opportunity in early infancy when targeted interventions on children of obese mothers may be most effective. Background/objective Parental obesity influences infant body size. To fully characterize their relative effects on infant adiposity, associations between maternal and paternal body mass index (BMI) category (normal: ≤25 kg m−2, overweight: 25 ‐