Early-life risk factors associated with Body Mass Index (BMI) in adulthood: A longitudinal study of the Western Australian pregnancy (Raine) cohort

Abstract

Objective: To determine the relative importance of parental and early-life variables as risk factors for adulthood overweight and obesity in offspring. Methods: Data were analysed on 1,355 participants from the Western Australian Pregnancy Cohort (Raine) Study who were born between 1989 and 1991 and followed until 22 years of age. Anthropometry were collected during pregnancy, at birth, 1 year and at approximately three yearly intervals thereafter. BMI was standardised producing z-scores, using the 2000 Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) growth charts. Multivariate analyses and cross-sectional logistic regression quantified the timing and contribution of early-life risk factors for overweight and obesity in young-adulthood. Results: At 5 years of age 12.6% of children were overweight and 5.2% were obese. By early adulthood, the prevalence of obesity had increased to 12.8%, whilst overweight remained relatively stable at 14.2% (range from early childhood to adulthood 11-16%). Parental pre-pregnancy BMI was the strongest determinant of adult offspring BMI. Although rapid first year weight-gain was associated with increased offspring BMI, the impact of first year weight-gain diminished over childhood, whilst the impact of parental BMI increased over time. Conclusions: Preconception and early-life family based interventions targeting parental obesity and life-style choices are likely to result a greater reduction in adult offspring obesity rates than school based interventions later in childhood.L720734602015-11-20 <br />