Persistent variations in average height between countries and between socio-economic groups: an overview of 10 European countries

Predictive Ability of Previous Pain and Disease Conditions on the Presentation of Post-COVID Pain in a Danish Cohort of Adult COVID-19 Survivors

BACKGROUND

Even though many post-COVID pain risk factors have been identified, little is known about the predictive profiles of these risk factors for the development of post-COVID pain.

METHODS

Data was collected from two separate questionnaires assessing demographics, pre-existing medical comorbidities, pain history, and post-COVID pain experience. Socioeconomic data and COVID-19 RT-PCR test results were collected from Danish registries. The study cohort (n = 68,028) was stratified into two groups reporting pre-COVID pain (n = 9090) and no pre-COVID pain (n = 55,938). Forward-selection prediction models were employed to identify predictor profiles for post-COVID pain in the full study cohort (Model 1) and the stratified groups with (Model 2) and without (Model 3) pre-COVID pain from 58 potential risk factors.

RESULTS

Model 1 achieved a 5-fold cross-validated AUC (cvAUC) of 0.68. Use of pain medication, stress, high income, age, female gender, and weight were the top predictors contributing to 97% of the model performance. Model 2 (cvAUC = 0.69) identified use of pain medication, breathing pain, stress, height, physical activity, and weight as the top predictors contributing to 98.6% of model predictive performance. Model 3 (cvAUC = 0.65) identified stress, female gender, weight, higher education, age, high income, and physical activity as the top predictors contributing to 98.5% of model predictive performance. Height was unique to Model 2, while being female and higher income were unique to Model 3.

CONCLUSIONS

The study highlights potential important predictors, and further research is needed to describe these in detail. The results may apply to the understanding of post-viral pain sequelae after other viral infections.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT

The explorative study investigates the predictive ability of a battery of pre-COVID risk factors potentially associated with the development of post-COVID pain. This article presents the profiles of predictors of interest in COVID-19 survivors with and without pre-COVID pain. The results will contribute to the understanding of patient profiles that might develop post-COVID pain conditions and provide a first step towards focused clinical predictive research.

Clustering individuals using INMTD: a novel versatile multi-view embedding framework integrating omics and imaging data

MOTIVATION

Combining omics and images can lead to a more comprehensive clustering of individuals than classic single-view approaches. Among the various approaches for multi-view clustering, nonnegative matrix tri-factorization (NMTF) and nonnegative Tucker decomposition (NTD) are advantageous in learning low-rank embeddings with promising interpretability. Besides, there is a need to handle unwanted drivers of clusterings (i.e. confounders).

RESULTS

In this work, we introduce a novel multi-view clustering method based on NMTF and NTD, named INMTD, which integrates omics and 3D imaging data to derive unconfounded subgroups of individuals. According to the adjusted Rand index, INMTD outperformed other clustering methods on a synthetic dataset with known clusters. In the application to real-life facial-genomic data, INMTD generated biologically relevant embeddings for individuals, genetics, and facial morphology. By removing confounded embedding vectors, we derived an unconfounded clustering with better internal and external quality; the genetic and facial annotations of each derived subgroup highlighted distinctive characteristics. In conclusion, INMTD can effectively integrate omics data and 3D images for unconfounded clustering with biologically meaningful interpretation.

AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION

INMTD is freely available at https://github.com/ZuqiLi/INMTD.

Associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors in women and men: a population-based longitudinal study based on The Tromsø Study 1979-2016

OBJECTIVES

Investigate associations between body height and cardiovascular disease risk factors at several time points in women and men across educational levels in Norway.

DESIGN

Population-based longitudinal study.

SETTING

The Tromsø Study, a population-based study with six surveys conducted between 1979 and 2016 in the municipality of Tromsø, Norway.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES

Body height, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, serum total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides and self-reported educational level.

PARTICIPANTS

23 512 women and men (49.6% women), aged 30-49 years at first participation in The Tromsø Study. Participants who attended more than one survey contributed with repeated measurements for blood pressure and lipids.Blood pressure and lipid values were used as dependent variables in sex specific age-adjusted linear mixed models. Body height at first participation was the independent variable, while survey time point and educational level were used as covariates.

RESULTS

Overall effect models showed inverse associations between body height and systolic blood pressure (reg. coefficients: -0.88 (95% CI -1.1, -0.6)), diastolic blood pressure (-0.41 (95% CI -0.6, -0.3)), serum total cholesterol (-0.12 (95% CI -0.1, -0.1)) and triglycerides (-0.06 (95% CI -0.1, -0.0)) in women. Inverse associations between body height and lipid variables were also observed in men (serum total cholesterol: -0.12 (95% CI -0.1, -0.1) triglycerides -0.05 (95% CI -0.1, -0.0)). Regression coefficients for associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors varied across surveys. Overall, there were no associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors based on educational level and survey.

CONCLUSION

The overall effect models support previous findings of inverse associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors in women, and inverse associations between body height and lipids in men. Our study showed varied degrees of associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors at different time points in Norway.

Associations Between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), ADHD Medication, and Shorter Height: A Quasi-Experimental and Family-Based Study

OBJECTIVE

The association between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and shorter height is unclear. This study examined the risk of shorter height in individuals with ADHD, and the influence of prenatal factors, ADHD medication, psychiatric comorbidity, socioeconomic factors, and familial liability.

METHOD

We drew on Swedish National Registers for 2 different study designs. First, height data for 14,268 individuals with ADHD and 71,339 controls were stratified into 2 groups: (1) before stimulant treatment was introduced in Sweden, and (2) after stimulant treatment was introduced in Sweden. Second, we used a family-based design including 833,172 relatives without ADHD with different levels of relatedness to the individuals with ADHD and matched controls.

RESULTS

ADHD was associated with shorter height both before (below-average height: OR = 1.31, 95% CI = 1.22-1.41) and after (below-average height: OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.13-1.31) stimulants for ADHD were introduced in Sweden, and was of similar magnitude in both cohorts. The association between ADHD and shorter height attenuated after adjustment for prenatal factors, psychiatric disorders, and socioeconomic status. Relatives of individuals with ADHD had an increased risk of shorter height (below-average height in full siblings: OR = 1.14, 95% CI = 1.09-1.19; maternal half siblings: OR = 1.10, 95% CI = 1.01-1.20; paternal half siblings: OR = 1.15, 95% CI = 1.07-1.24, first full cousins: OR = 1.10, 95% CI = 1.08-1.12).

CONCLUSION

Our findings suggest that ADHD is associated with shorter height. On a population level, this association was present both before and after ADHD medications were available in Sweden. The association between ADHD and height was partly explained by prenatal factors, psychiatric comorbidity, low socioeconomic status, and a shared familial liability for ADHD.

The association between body height and cancer: a retrospective analysis of 784,192 outpatients in Germany

PURPOSE

Cancer risk is determined by numerous factors. Recently, body height has been linked to different cancer sites in different populations.

METHODS

This retrospective cohort study included 784,192 adult outpatients with available body height values from 2010 to 2020 using the Disease Analyzer database (IQVIA). The outcome was the incidence of cancer diagnoses within the study period according to body height, stratified by age, sex, and cancer sites.

RESULTS

Overall cancer incidence rose with increasing body height in both sexes. In women, there was a rise from 10.9 (≤ 160 cm) to 13.6 (> 180 cm) and from 16.6 (≤ 160 cm) to 26.8 (> 180 cm) cases per 1000 patient years in the 51-60 and > 70 years age group, respectively. Among men, cancer incidene increased from 23.9 (≤ 165 cm) to 26.3 (176-185 cm) and from 38.9 (≤ 165 cm) to 43.4 (176-185 cm) cases per 1000 patient years in 61-70 and > 70 years age group, respectively. The hazard ratio (HR) for developing cancer was 1.11 (95% CI 1.09-1.13) for every 10 cm increase in body height among women and 1.06 (95% CI 1.04-1.08) among men. A significant association between body height and cancer incidence was found for certain cancer sites, such as malignant melanoma, in both women (HR 1.21, 95% CI 1.11-1.33) and men (HR 1.29, 95% CI 1.18-1.42).

CONCLUSION

In this study, we present the first data from a large cohort from Germany that provide strong evidence for a positive association between body height and the overall risk of developing various cancers.

Sex Differences in Athletic Performance: Perspectives on Transgender Athletes

Sex hormone concentrations, particularly testosterone, are primary determinants of sex-based differences in athletic and sports performance, and this relationship may inform fair competition and participation for athletes. This article describes the sex-based dichotomy in testosterone and the implications for sex-based differences in individual sports performance, including factors that relate to athletic performance for transgender individuals, and areas of future investigation.

Latent growth analysis of children's height growth trajectories

Characterizing and quantifying the trajectories of variables of interest through time in their field of study is of interest to a range of disciplines. The aim of this study was to investigate the growth speed in height of children and its determinants. A total of 3401 males and 3200 females from four low- and middle-income countries with measured height on five occasions from 2002 to 2016 were included in the study. Data were analyzed using a latent growth model. The results of the study reported that children in four low- and middle-income countries exhibited substantial growth inequalities. There was a significant gender difference in change of growth with males had a higher baseline, rate of change, and acceleration in height growth than females. Comparing the component of slopes across countries, the growth change inequalities were observed among children. These inequalities were statistically significant, with the highest rate of change observed in Peru and Vietnam.

Time trends in body height according to educational level. A descriptive study from the Tromsø Study 1979-2016

OBJECTIVES

The objective of our study was to describe time trends in body height according to attained educational level in women and men in Norway.

METHODS

We used previously collected data from six repeated cross-sectional studies in the population based Tromsø Study 1979-2016. Measured body height in cm and self-reported educational level were the primary outcome measures. We included 31 466 women and men aged 30-49 years, born between 1930 and 1977. Participants were stratified by 10-year birth cohorts and allocated into four groups based on attained levels of education. Descriptive statistics was used to estimate mean body height and calculate height differences between groups with different educational levels.

RESULTS

Mean body height increased by 3.4 cm (95% confidence interval (CI) 3.0, 3.8) in women (162.5-165.9 cm) and men (175.9-179.3 cm) between 1930 and 1977. The height difference between groups with primary education compared to long tertiary education was 5.1 cm (95% CI 3.7, 6.5) in women (161.6-166.7 cm) and 4.3 cm (95% CI 3.3, 5.3) in men (175.0-179.3 cm) born in 1930-39. The height differences between these educational groups were reduced to 3.0 cm (95% CI 1.9, 4.1) in women (163.6-166.6 cm) and 2.0 cm (95% CI 0.9, 3.1) in men (178.3-180.3 cm) born in 1970-77.

CONCLUSIONS

Body height increased in women and men. Women and men with long tertiary education had the highest mean body height, which remained stable across all birth cohorts. Women and men in the three other groups had a gradual increase in height by birth cohort, reducing overall height differences between educational groups in our study population.

Do brachycephaly and nose size predict the severity of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)? A sample-based geometric morphometric analysis of craniofacial variation in relation to OSA syndrome and the role of confounding factors

Obstructive sleep apnea is a common disorder that leads to sleep fragmentation and is potentially bidirectionally related to a variety of comorbidities, including an increased risk of heart failure and stroke. It is often considered a consequence of anatomical abnormalities, especially in the head and neck, but its pathophysiology is likely to be multifactorial in origin. With geometric morphometrics, and a large sample of adults from the Study for Health in Pomerania, we explore the association of craniofacial morphology to the apnea-hypopnea index used as an estimate of obstructive sleep apnea severity. We show that craniofacial size and asymmetry, an aspect of morphological variation seldom analysed in obstructive sleep apnea research, are both uncorrelated to apnea-hypopnea index. In contrast, as in previous analyses, we find evidence that brachycephaly and larger nasal proportions might be associated to obstructive sleep apnea severity. However, this correlational signal is weak and completely disappears when age-related shape variation is statistically controlled for. Our findings suggest that previous work might need to be re-evaluated, and urge researchers to take into account the role of confounders to avoid potentially spurious findings in association studies.

Current and past factors affecting the quality of aging in a sample of Spanish elderly

Aging is a multifactorial process influenced by both biological and sociocultural factors. The objective of this study was to identify current and past factors with an impact on the quality of aging in a sample of people 65 years of age or older born in the postwar period after the Spanish civil war. Socioeconomic, health, anthropometric, and food consumption data were collected in public Leisure Centers for the elderly in Madrid. The sample consists of 587 people (64.6% women), with a mean age of 71.8 ±5.3 years. Following the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines regarding what is considered Healthy Aging, an index called the Index of Quality of Aging was calculated from four variables: the Mini Mental State Examination score, perception of health, satisfaction with life and the number of diseases that affect daily life. Another index called the Diet Inflammation Index was created based on the inflammatory or anti-inflammatory potential of different foods. The Index of Quality of Ageing was used as a dependent variable in linear regression models for men and women. Differences by gender were observed in the factors that influence the quality of aging. Education had a positive influence on men quality of ageing while it does not on women. In these, a relationship between the quality of the current diet and the quality of aging was observed.

Growing taller unequally? Adult height and socioeconomic status in Spain (Cohorts 1940-1994)

Socioeconomic inequalities and their evolution in different historical contexts have been widely studied. However, some of their dimensions remain relatively unexplored, such as the role played by socioeconomic status in the trajectory of biological living standards, especially net nutritional status. The main objective of this article is to analyze whether the power of socioeconomic status (SES) to explain differences in the biological dimensions of human well-being (in this case, adult height, a reliable metric for health and nutritional status) has increased or diminished over time. Educational attainment and occupational category have been used as two different proxies for the SES of Spanish men and women born between 1940 and 1994, thus covering a historical period in Spain characterized by remarkable socioeconomic development and a marked increase in mean adult height. Our data is drawn from nine waves of the Spanish National Health Survey and the Spanish sample of two waves of the European Health Interview Survey (ENSE) for the period 1987 to 2017 (N = 73,699 citizens aged 23-47). A multivariate regression analysis has been conducted, showing that, as a whole, height differentials by educational attainment have diminished over time, whereas differences by occupational category of household heads have largely persisted. These results indicate the need for further qualification when describing the process of convergence in biological well-being indicators across social groups. For instance, the progressive enrollment of a greater proportion of the population into higher educational levels may lead us to underestimate the real differences between socioeconomic groups, while other proxies of SES still point to the persistence of such differences.

Biological Well-Being and Inequality in Canary Islands: Lanzarote (Cohorts 1886-1982)

Developments in anthropometric history in the Iberian Peninsula have been remarkable in recent decades. In contrast, we barely know about the behavior of insular population groups and infants' and adults' growth during the nutritional transition in the Canary Islands. This paper analyzes the height, weight and body mass index of military recruits (conscripts) in a rural municipality from the eastern Canaries during the economic modernization process throughout the 20th century. The case study (municipality of San Bartolomé (SB) in Lanzarote, the island closest to the African continent) uses anthropometric data of military recruits from 1907-2001 (cohorts from 1886 to 1982). The final sample is composed of 1921 recruits' records that were measured and weighed at the ages of 19-21 years old when adolescent growth had finished. The long-term anthropometric study is carried out using two approaches: a malnutrition and growth retardation approach and an inequality perspective. In the first one, we use the methodology recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) that is based on z-scores. In the second one, we implement several inequality dimensions such as the coefficient of variation (CV), percentiles and an analysis for height and BMI evolution by five socioeconomic categories. The data suggest that improvements in biological well-being were due to advances in nutrition since the 1960s. They show that infant nutrition is sensitively associated with economic growth and demographic and epidemiological changes.

The Escape from Malnutrition of Chilean Boys and Girls: Height-for-Age Z Scores in Late XIX and XX Centuries

We studied the trends of height-for-age (HAZ) Z scores by socioeconomic status (SES) groups of Chilean boys and girls aged 5-18 born between 1877 and 2001, by performing a meta-analysis of 53 studies reporting height-for-age sample data from which 1258 HAZ score datapoints were calculated using the 2000 reference growth charts for the US of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We found stagnant mean and median HAZ scores of about -1.55 to -1.75 for the general population, and -2.2 to -2.55 for lower SES groups up to cohorts born in the 1940s. However, we found an upwards structural change in cohorts born after the 1940s, a period in which HAZ scores grew at a pace of about 0.25 to 0.30 HAZ per decade. Since this change happened in a context of moderate Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth, high and persistent income inequality, and stagnant wages of the working class, we discuss the extent to which our findings are associated with the increase in public social spending and the implementation and expansion of a variety of social policies since the 1940s and early 1950s.

Relevance of anthropometric measurements as predictors of prevalent diabetes type 2: a cross-sectional study on a Norwegian population

OBJECTIVES

The objective was to determine the predictive potential of anthropometric indices to screen prevalent diabetes mellitus type 2 in a Norwegian population.

DESIGN

This is a cross-sectional design to determine the potential association of waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), waist circumference (WC) and body mass index (BMI) with prevalent diabetes mellitus type 2 through logistic regression analysis. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to determine the predictive potential of the anthropometric indices. Youden's index was applied to determine the optimal cut-off points for each anthropometric index.

SETTING

This study used cross-sectional data from the populations-based Health Study in Nord-Trøndelag which invited all citizens in the county above 20 years of age.

PARTICIPANTS

This study included all those who were non-pregnant and had complete data (N=50 042), 98.5% of the participants. The sample is to be considered representative for the population of Norway.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES

OR and ROC of the potential association between diabetes mellitus type 2 and anthropometric indices were the main planned and performed outcome measures.

RESULTS

The results suggest that the anthropometric indices performed differently within the Norwegian population with WHR and WHtR being the stronger predictor with (ROC) of 0.746 (0.735 to 0.757) and 0.741 (0.730 to 0.752). The predictive potential for the investigated anthropometric indices was generally stronger for women than men.

CONCLUSION

Anthropometric indices of size BMI and the highly correlated WC are less associated with prevalent diabetes mellitus type 2 than WHR (WC adjusted for hip circumference) or WHtR (WC adjusted for height) in a Norwegian population.

Analysis of factors contributing to occupational health inequality in Korea: a cross-sectional study using nationally representative survey data

Background

Despite the consensus that higher occupational classes tend to have better health and lower mortality rates, one study has reported reversed occupational gradients in mortality rates among Korean men after the economic crisis in the late 2000s. To examine these patterns of health inequality in more detail, we investigated the tendency of occupational gradients in socioeconomic position and multiple pathway indicators known to affect mortality in Korea.

Methods

We used data from 4176 men aged 35–64 in Korea derived from the 2007–2009 and 2013–2015 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. We compared the age-standardized prevalence and age-adjusted mean values of each contributing factor to health inequality among occupational groups, which are divided into upper non-manual workers, lower non-manual workers, manual workers, and others. Contributing factors included childhood and adulthood socioeconomic position indicators, biological risk factors, health behaviors, psychosocial factors, and work environment.

Results

Upper non-manual workers had prominently higher levels of education, income, parental education, and economic activity than lower non-manual and manual workers. The rates of smoking and high-risk alcohol consumption were lower, and the rate of weight control activities was higher, in the non-manual classes. Further, the rates of depression and suicidal ideation were lower, and perceptions of the work environment were more favorable, among non-manual workers than among their manual counterparts.

Conclusions

We detected occupational inequality in a wide range of socioeconomic positions and pathway indicators in Korea with consistently favorable patterns for upper non-manual workers. These occupational gradients do not support the previously reported reversed pattern of higher mortality rates in non-manual groups versus in the manual job class in Korea.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13690-021-00638-9.

Do blind people share the tall-man stereotype?

The stereotype of a tall man has been reported in numerous studies. High stature is commonly associated with advantages such as leadership skills, wealth, intelligence or social status, and actual differences between the short and the tall men were indeed found for these traits, mainly in favor of the tall men. It is not certain, however, whether the height-related effects are biologically determined or if they result from socially-driven mechanisms. In this study we wanted to explore whether congenitally blind individuals, who are unable to perceive other people’s stature through the most salient, visual channel, share the positive, height-related stereotype. Thirty-four congenitally blind and forty-three sighted men and women rated four positive characteristics of a tall or a short man. It was found that none of the traits assigned to the tall man by the sighted people was assigned to this person by the blind individuals. In the congenitally blind group, no differences between the assessments of the tall and the short man were revealed. We discuss our findings in the context of social perception and stereotypes research.

Effect of Self-reported Height on Occupational Rank Among Police Officers: Especially for Women it Pays to be Tall

This study among 725 male and 247 female police officers from The Netherlands examined the association between self-reported height and occupational rank from the perspective of sexual selection. Male and female police officers were taller than the average population. A larger percentage of women than of men was found in the lowest ranks, but in the leadership positions, there was a similar percentage of women as of men. Overall, but especially among women, height was linearly associated with occupational rank: the taller one was, the higher one’s rank. These effects were independent of educational level and age. The implications for evolutionary theorizing from the perspective of sexual selection on the effect of tallness on status and dominance among women are discussed.

Assessing the effects of autarchic policies on the biological well-being: Analysis of deviations in cohort male height in the Valencian Community (Spain) during Francoist regime

This article aims to assess the impact of autarchic policies on the biological dimensions of human well-being during Francoist regime in Spain. This is done by examining the nutritional status of the population through the study of male adult heights. Our case study is the Valencian Community with the focus on the period 1940-59 which witnessed the implementation of such policies. The heights of 21-year old draftees born between 1900 and 1954 from nine municipalities (N = 87,510) were analyzed in the light of inter-cohort deviations from a secular trend established for cohorts that were not exposed to autarchy-related hardships. Height was regressed on infant mortality as a way to control for infection and therefore approach the net effect of nutrition on height outcomes. Contrarily to what was displayed by cohort height trends in themselves, the results reveal a significant worsening of the nutritional status of the male population at the time. Deviations from the expected height trend across municipalities ranged between -0.5 and -3.4 mm per year. The effects of malnutrition are found to be larger among cohorts born in the period 1920-34 in coherence with a longer exposure to autarchy hardships during adolescence. Pre-autarchy nutrition levels observed among the cohorts of 1900-14 were not regained until the cohorts 1945-49. The results also show that malnutrition had an unequal impact with the large industrial towns of our sample experiencing the poorest height outcomes. Overall, these results invite to revise conclusions obtained from the sole evidence of height trends and they question the efficiency of intervention policies implemented in Spain during the 1940s.

Growth change in Polish women: Reduction of the secular trends?

The aim of the study was to analyse changes in the average height of adult Polish women born in 1931-2001 in the aspect of dynamically changing economic and socio-economic conditions of the living environment. An ethnically homogeneous group of 6,028 adult women from large Polish cities, born in 1931-2001, living between 1931 and 2020, were examined using the same research methods and research equipment. All women were divided into eight birth cohorts. The Kruskal-Wallis test and multiple regression analyses were used. Root Mean Square Standardized Effect (RMSSE), critical value of the test, and test power were calculated. The average height of women born during 70 years of the study increased by 9.63 cm, from 158.22 cm (SD = 5.57 cm) to 167.85 cm (SD = 6.91 cm) (H = 1084.84, p<0.001). The intensity of the intergenerational trend in subsequent cohorts of years of birth varied strongly between decades, averaging 1.34 cm/decade. The body height in women increased significantly up to the height of those born between 1970 and 1979 and then the trend weakened noticeably, although it remained positive. The observed secular trend confirms positive changes in the standard of living of Polish women between 1931 and 2020. Improving living conditions allow people to fully achieve their genetically determined growth potential.

The impact of lifecourse socio-economic position and individual social mobility on breast cancer risk

BACKGROUND

Women with an advantaged socioeconomic position (SEP) have a higher risk of developing breast cancer (BC). The reasons for this association do not seem to be limited to reproductive factors and remain to be understood. We aimed to investigate the impact of lifecourse SEP from childhood and social mobility on the risk of BC considering a broad set of potential mediators.

METHODS

We used a discovery-replication strategy in two European prospective cohorts, E3N (N = 83,436) and EPIC-Italy (N = 20,530). In E3N, 7877 women were diagnosed with BC during a median 24.4 years of follow-up, while in EPIC-Italy, 893 BC cases were diagnosed within 15.1 years. Hazard ratios (HR) were estimated using Cox proportional hazard models on imputed data.

RESULTS

In E3N, women with higher education had a higher risk of BC (HR [95%CI] = 1.21 [1.12, 1.30]). This association was attenuated by adjusting for reproductive factors, in particular age at first childbirth (HR[95%CI] = 1.13 [1.04, 1.22]). Health behaviours, anthropometric variables, and BC screening had a weaker effect on the association. Women who remained in a stable advantaged SEP had a higher risk of BC (HR [95%CI] = 1.24 [1.07; 1.43]) attenuated after adjustment for potential mediators (HR [95%CI] = 1.13 [0.98; 1.31]). These results were replicated in EPIC-Italy.

CONCLUSIONS

These results confirm the important role of reproductive factors in the social gradient in BC risk, which does not appear to be fully explained by the large set of potential mediators, including cancer screening, suggesting that further research is needed to identify additional mechanisms.

Relationships between metabolic markers and obesity measures in two populations that differ in stature-The SAMINOR Study

Background

The relationships between metabolic markers and obesity measures may differ by ethnicity, sex, and height. Questions have been posed whether these relationships differ by ethnicity in the population in Northern Norway, but this has not been explored yet.

Objectives

Investigate the relationships between metabolic markers and obesity measures in Sami and non‐Sami and explore the impact of stature.

Methods

In total, 13 921 men and women aged 30 and 36 to 79 years (22.0% Sami) from a population‐based cross‐sectional survey in Norway, the SAMINOR 1 Survey (2003‐2004, 57.2% attendance), were included. Relationships between triglycerides, high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, glucose, systolic/diastolic blood pressure (BP), metabolic syndrome and diabetes mellitus as outcomes, and body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and waist‐to‐height ratio (WHtR), respectively, were modelled using fractional polynomial regression. Appropriate interaction analyses and adjustments were made.

Results

The non‐Sami were approximately 6 cm taller than the Sami. No interactions were found between ethnicity and obesity. At the same levels of WC, BMI, or WHtR, levels of lipids and BP differed marginally between Sami and non‐Sami, but these were eliminated by height adjustment, with one exception: At any given WC, BMI, or WHtR, Sami had approximately 1.4 mmHg (95% CI, −2.1 to −0.7) lower systolic BP than non‐Sami (P values < .001).

Conclusions

Height explained the marginal ethnic differences in metabolic markers at the same level of obesity, except for systolic BP, which was lower in Sami than in non‐Sami at any given BMI, WC, or WHtR.

Social class-specific secular trends in height among 19-year old Polish men: 6th national surveys from 1965 till 2010

The results presented in this study concern the assessment of the secular trend of body height in 10 % a random national sample (N = 134,224) representing all regions of Poland in 8 homogeneous social groups over 45 years in Poland (1965-2010). Very significant political, social and economic changes in Poland occurred in the period studied. The political revolution that began in Poland at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s dramatically changed the picture of social inequalities in the country. It rapidly transformed (in different directions and to a different degree) the economic situation, working conditions, lifestyles and the prestige of particular social classes and professional groups. A positive secular trend was observed in 19-year-old participants in the period analysed in all homogeneous socio-professional groups, however, with different intensity in each group. The highest body height increases in 1965-2010 were observed in the sons of farmers with post-primary father's education (7.77 cm). The lowest were observed among the sons of professionals, only 5.45 cm. Although social distances between extreme socio-economic groups significantly decreased (from 4.89 cm in 1965 to 2.76 cm in 2010), social gradients of body height, despite the improvement in the standards of living of the entire society remained exceptionally stable and unchanged for nearly half a century.

The Relation Between Household Food Insecurity and Children's Height in Canada and the United States: A Scoping Review

Household food insecurity is a determinant of health and marker of material deprivation. Although research has shown that food insecurity is associated with numerous adverse health, developmental and nutritional outcomes among children in high-income countries, little is known about its impact on children's height, an important marker of nutritional status and physical development. We reviewed evidence on the relation between experience-based measures of food insecurity and the height of children aged 0-18 y in Canada and the United States. The search, conducted in Embase, Medline, CINAHL, ProQuest, Web of Science, and EconLit from the inception of the databases to October 2017, identified 811 records that were screened for relevance. A total of 8 peer-reviewed studies, 2 from Canada and 6 from the United States, met the inclusion criteria and were summarized. Five studies found no association between food insecurity and children's height. One study found that having taller children in the household predicted more severe food insecurity, whereas 2 studies found that more severe experiences of food insecurity were associated with shorter height among children from ethnic minority populations. These results suggest that household food insecurity may not be associated with height inequalities among children in Canada and the United States, except perhaps in certain high-risk populations. However, the few studies identified for review provide insufficient evidence to determine whether food insecurity is or is not associated with children's height in these countries. Given the importance of optimal linear growth for current and future well-being, it is critical to understand how different modifiable environmental circumstances relate to children's height to help establish priorities for intervention. Families with children are disproportionately affected by food insecurity, and more research explicitly designed to examine the association between household food insecurity and children's height in high-income countries is needed.

Long run height and education implications of early life growth faltering: a synthetic panel analysis of 425 birth cohorts in 21 low- and middle-income countries

Background

We estimated the associations between exposure to early life growth faltering at the population level and adult height and education outcomes in a sample of 21 low- and middle-income countries.

Methods

We conducted a synthetic panel analysis of 425 birth cohorts across 126 regions in 21 LMICs surveyed in the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) both as children and as adults. Data from historic (1987–1993) DHS survey rounds were used to compute average height-for-age z-scores at the province-birth-year level. Cohort measures of early life growth were then linked to adult height and educational attainment measures collected on individuals from the same cohorts in the 2006-2014 DHS survey rounds. The primary exposure of interest was population-level early life growth (region-birth year average HAZ) and growth faltering (region-birth year stunting prevalence). Multivariable linear regression models were used to estimate the associations between adult outcomes and population-level measures of early life linear growth.

Results

The average cohort height-for-age z-score (HAZ) in childhood was − 1.53 [range: − 2.73, − 0.348]. In fully adjusted models, each unit increase in cohort childhood HAZ was associated with a 2.0 cm [95% CI: 1.09–2.9] increase in adult height, with larger associations for men than for women. Evidence for the association between early childhood height and adult educational attainment was found to be inconclusive (0.269, 95% CI: [− 0.68–1.22]).

Conclusions

While early childhood linear growth at the cohort level appears to be highly predictive of adult height, the empirical association between early life growth and adult educational attainment seems weak and heterogeneous across countries.

Registration

This study was registered on May 10, 2017 at the ISRCTN Registry (http://www.isrctn.com), registration number ISRCTN82438662.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12889-019-7203-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Why do Zenker's diverticulae occur more often on the left than the right side?

BACKGROUND

Zenker's diverticulum is a pharyngoesophageal outpouching of mucosa and submucosa through Killian's dehiscence.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the propensity for Zenker's diverticulum to occur on the left side by examining muscle thickness in Killian's dehiscence, and to explore correlations between muscle thickness, sex, height and age.

METHODS

The study included 109 Caucasian cadavers, 52 male and 57 female. The mean thickest and thinnest measurements of left medial, left lateral, right medial and right lateral aspects of Killian's dehiscence were calculated. The paired student's t-test was used to determine significance.

RESULTS

The average left muscle layer was significantly thinner than the right muscle layer, in both medial and lateral aspects. Furthermore, medial muscle thickness was significantly thinner than its respective lateral aspect for both the left and right sides. No correlations were found between muscle thickness and cadavers' sex, length or stature, or age.

CONCLUSION

There was a significant difference in muscle thickness between the left and right sides of Killian's dehiscence. The findings suggest there is a reason why Zenker's diverticulum occurs predominantly on the left side. The study also showed a significant difference in muscle thickness between the medial and lateral aspects of Killian's triangle.

Environmental and birth characteristics as predictors of short stature in early childhood

AIM

To evaluate for environmental and birth characteristic predictors of short stature in a large nationally representative sample.

METHODS

We evaluated 10 127 children from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten 2011 cohort, using univariate and multivariable linear and logistic regression to evaluate factors associated with short stature (height <3rd percentile) at kindergarten through second grade. Predictors included birthweight, preterm status, sex, parental education, parental income and race/ethnicity.

RESULTS

Lower birthweight was associated with short stature, with each decreasing kilogram having a 2.45 adjusted odds ratio (aOR; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.81, 3.33) of short stature for term children in second grade. Preterm children (compared to term children) had an aOR of 2.23 (CI 1.32, 3.78) for short stature. Other predictors of short stature included female sex and lower parental income. African American children had a lower risk of short stature (aOR 0.34, CI 0.14, 0.82) compared to white children.

CONCLUSION

Predictors of short stature include lower birthweight, preterm status, female sex and parental income. Socio-economic disparities and race/ethnicity further influenced height. These data may assist paediatricians in considering contributors to stature outcomes by early school age.

Global country-level estimates of associations between adult height and the distribution of income

OBJECTIVES

This article presents the first estimates of global associations between adult height and the distribution of income, and considers the roles of regional heterogeneity, heterogeneity across low- and high-income countries, and of infant mortality as a potential mediator.

METHODS

Linear parametric and semiparametric regressions predicting mean height and sexual dimorphism in height are estimated using data on one cohort born in 1996 with height measured in 2016. Measurement error in income inequality is addressed using an instrumental variables method.

RESULTS

Across countries higher income per capita is strongly associated with higher mean height, and higher income inequality is associated with lower mean height after holding mean income constant. These relationships vary with mean income: at low incomes, higher mean income strongly predicts greater height but income inequality has no statistically significant effect, whereas for high-income countries, only higher income inequality predicts lower height, and only in Europe. Sexual dimorphism in height is positively associated with mean income at low incomes, but it is not related to income inequality.

CONCLUSIONS

Controlling for income inequality has modest effects on a positive height-income gradient. Greater inequality predicts lower height after holding income per capita constant, suggesting that mean height should be used with caution as a proxy for standard of living in some contexts. The extent to which these associations reflect causality running from economic conditions to height cannot be determined from these results.

Women's height in several African countries in the first half of the 20th century

Height and its variations in time are considered useful indicators of living conditions in countries and in periods where no written sources are available. Majority of data refer to male stature, whereas data concerning female stature are limited and cover only a short span. This paper investigates the height of 456 women in 6 African countries, born around the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The objective is to provide information on the stature of females from those areas at that time and to compare the results with those from the literature, which refer to more recent times. Data were recovered from original individual forms and/or monographs of the time, and when possible, changes in mean statures were reported, considering two age classes: 20.0-29.9 years and 30.0 years and over. Individual heights were plotted according to year of birth. The main results show tendencies toward height increases in Eritrea and Ethiopia, stable values of stature in Somalia and decreasing heights in women mainly from the oases in Cyrenaica. It has been suggested that these results may reflect the synergic action, with different local modes and intensity, of a changing model of slavery in force at the time, lack of constituted states and continuing civil wars among different ethnic groups, and of an effect of severe droughts in the period under consideration. A comparison with data available on modern populations from 4 of the investigated countries shows that this trend has since changed. Further insights into this suggested trend may be gained from the study of male series.

Distributional change of women's adult height in low- and middle-income countries over the past half century: An observational study using cross-sectional survey data

BACKGROUND

Adult height reflects childhood circumstances and is associated with health, longevity, and maternal-fetal outcomes. Mean height is an important population metric, and declines in height have occurred in several low- and middle-income countries, especially in Africa, over the last several decades. This study examines changes at the population level in the distribution of height over time across a broad range of low- and middle-income countries during the past half century.

METHODS AND FINDINGS

The study population comprised 1,122,845 women aged 25-49 years from 59 countries with women's height measures available from four 10-year birth cohorts from 1950 to 1989 using data from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) collected between 1993 and 2013. Multilevel regression models were used to examine the association between (1) mean height and standard deviation (SD) of height (a population-level measure of inequality) and (2) median height and the 5th and 95th percentiles of height. Mean-difference plots were used to conduct a graphical analysis of shifts in the distribution within countries over time. Overall, 26 countries experienced a significant increase, 26 experienced no significant change, and 7 experienced a significant decline in mean height between the first and last birth cohorts. Rwanda experienced the greatest loss in height (-1.4 cm, 95% CI: -1.84 cm, -0.96 cm) while Colombia experienced the greatest gain in height (2.6 cm, 95% CI: 2.36 cm, 2.84 cm). Between 1950 and 1989, 24 out of 59 countries experienced a significant change in the SD of women's height, with increased SD in 7 countries-all of which are located in sub-Saharan Africa. The distribution of women's height has not stayed constant across successive birth cohorts, and regression models suggest there is no evidence of a significant relationship between mean height and the SD of height (β = 0.015 cm, 95% CI: -0.032 cm, 0.061 cm), while there is evidence for a positive association between median height and the 5th percentile (β = 0.915 cm, 95% CI: 0.820 cm, 1.002 cm) and 95th percentile (β = 0.995 cm, 95% CI: 0.925 cm, 1.066 cm) of height. Benin experienced the largest relative expansion in the distribution of height. In Benin, the ratio of variance between the latest and earliest cohort is estimated as 1.5 (95% CI: 1.4, 1.6), while Lesotho and Uganda experienced the greatest relative contraction of the distribution, with the ratio of variance between the latest and earliest cohort estimated as 0.8 (95% CI: 0.7, 0.9) in both countries. Limitations of the study include the representativeness of DHS surveys over time, age-related height loss, and consistency in the measurement of height between surveys.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings of this study indicate that the population-level distribution of women's height does not stay constant in relation to mean changes. Because using mean height as a summary population measure does not capture broader distributional changes, overreliance on the mean may lead investigators to underestimate disparities in the distribution of environmental and nutritional determinants of health.

Stature in adults as an indicator of socioeconomic inequalities in Mexico

OBJECTIVE

To estimate the association between stature in Mexican adults and some sociodemographic factors.

METHODS

We studied a sample of 30 970 subjects, using anthropometric data from the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Survey (ENSANUT 2012). The first quartile was used as the cutoff to define short stature. We analyzed differences among stature strata for sociodemographic variables by using the Kruskal-Wallis test. We estimated odds ratios to measure the association between stature and sociodemographic variables, controlling for potential confounders.

RESULTS

Persons from the southern region of the country were some three times as likely to be of short stature than were subjects in the northern region. The stature difference between the Mexican states with the highest and the lowest average stature was larger than the average difference in stature between Mexico and the United States of America. Adults who had had less than six years of schooling presented the highest prevalence of short stature, regardless of sex, region of the country, place of residence (rural or urban), or the proportion of indigenous language speakers in a state. In addition, the stratum with the highest marginalization (percentage of the population lacking education and services, with a low income, and living in a small community) showed the highest prevalence of short stature.

CONCLUSION

In Mexico, adults who are of short stature have unequal living conditions when compared to those of average or high stature, and this could drive increases in health inequity.

Early life undernutrition and adult height: The Dutch famine of 1944-45

Current research shows strong associations between adult height and several positive outcomes such as higher cognitive skills, better earning capacity, increased chance of marriage and better health. It is therefore relevant to investigate the determinants of adult height. There is mixed evidence on the effects of undernutrition during early life on adult height. Therefore, our study aims at assessing the impact of undernutrition during gestation and at ages younger than 15 on adult height. We used data from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. Exposure to undernutrition was determined by place of residence during the Dutch famine during World War II. Included respondents were born between 15 May 1930 and 1 November 1945 and lived in the northern part of the Netherlands during the famine period (n=1008). Exposure data was collected using interviews and questionnaires and adult height was measured. Exposed and non-exposed respondents were classified in the age categories pregnancy- age 1 (n=85), age 1-5 (n=323), age 6-10 (n=326) or puberty (age 11-15, n=274). Linear regression analyses were used to test the associations of adult height with exposure. The robustness of the regression results was tested with sensitivity analyses. In the models adjusted for covariates (i.e., number of siblings, education level of parents, and year of birth) and stratified by gender, adult height was significantly shorter for females exposed at ages younger than 1 (-4.45cm [-7.44--1.47]) or at ages younger than 2 (-4.08cm [-7.20--0.94]). The results for males were only borderline significant for exposure under age 1 (-3.16 [-6.82-0.49]) and significant for exposure under age 2 (-4.09cm [-7.20--0.96]). Exposure to the Dutch famine at other ages was not consistently significantly associated with adult height. In terms of public health relevance, the study's results further underpin the importance of supporting pregnant women and young parents exposed to undernutrition.

Social reorganization and biological change: An examination of stature variation among Iron Age Samnites from Abruzzo, central Italy

Stature is a sensitive indicator of overall environmental quality experienced during growth and development, and can provide insights on a population's 'well-being'. This study investigated changes in estimated adult stature in a large (N=568) sample of Samnite Iron Age (800-27 BCE) people from central Italy, during a period of increasing sociopolitical complexity. Stature was analyzed diachronically, between sexes, and across social strata inferred using the 'Status Index' based on funerary treatment. It was expected: 1) a decrease in stature from the Orientalizing-Archaic period (O-A) to the fifth century BC (V SEC) and the following Hellenistic period (ELL), due to population increase and urbanization; 2) social status to positively influence the attainment of the full stature potential; 3) sexual dimorphism to be higher in more stratified groups. Results revealed no significant diachronic changes in stature (females: O-A: 154.2cm,V SEC: 154.2cm, and ELL: 153.6cm; males: O-A: 165.0cm,V SEC: 165.2cm, and ELL: 165.0cm) or sexual dimorphism. High-status males were taller than low-status (p=0.021), possibly due to a better diet, but only in the Orientalizing-Archaic period. Nonsignificant changes in females suggest either differential access to resources in women, or a better buffering from environmental optima or crises. The results of this study highlight the complex interrelation between social factors and human growth, and stress the importance of understanding the specific mechanisms leading to variation in adult stature.

Body height and immune efficacy: testing body stature as a signal of biological quality

According to the good genes hypothesis and energy allocation theory, human adult body height may reflect biological quality. An important aspect of this quality is immune system functioning (ISF). The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between ISF and body height in healthy people. The ISF was determined by several important innate (total complement and lysozyme activity, neutrophil function) and adaptive immune parameters (lymphocytes, IgA and IgG, and response to the flu vaccine). Overall, 96 males and 97 females were subjected to flu vaccination, and of these, 35 males and 34 females were subjected to tetanus. Blood samples were collected before and four weeks after vaccination. Immunomodulatory factors, participant's age, body fat, and free testosterone levels, were controlled. There was no association between body height and all analysed immune parameters for both sexes. That might suggest that in Western society, a women's preference for taller men is not related to 'good genes for immune competence'. We propose the novel Immunity Priority Hypothesis that explains the lack of relationship between adult body stature and ISF. This hypothesis, however, does not contradict the signalling role of a man's body height as a morphological marker of biological quality.

Childhood Body Size and the Risk of Malignant Melanoma in Adulthood

Malignant melanoma (MM) is the most aggressive form of skin cancer. Adult anthropometry influences MM development; however, associations between childhood body size and future melanomagenesis are largely unknown. We investigated whether height, body mass index (BMI; weight (kg)/height (m)²), and body surface area (BSA) at ages 7–13 years and birth weight are associated with adult MM. Data from the Copenhagen School Health Records Register, containing annual height and weight measurements of 372,636 Danish children born in 1930–1989, were linked with the Danish Cancer Registry. Cox regression analyses were performed. During follow-up, 2,329 MM cases occurred. Height at ages 7–13 years was significantly associated with MM, even after BMI and BSA adjustments. No significant BMI-MM or BSA-MM associations were detected when adjusting for height. Children who were persistently tall at both age 7 years and age 13 years had a significantly increased MM risk compared with children who grew taller between those ages. Birth weight was positively associated with MM. We conclude that associations between body size and MM originate early in life and are driven largely by height and birth weight, without any comparable influence of BMI or BSA. Melanoma transformation is unlikely to be due to height per se; however, height-regulating processes in childhood present new areas for mechanistic explorations of this disease.

The relationship between adult stature and longevity: tall men are unlikely to outlive their short peers – evidence from a study of all adult deaths in Poland in the years 2004–2008

Early epidemiological studies demonstrated that short stature is associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD), diabetes, lower energy intake or food deprivation during growth, poor health, and increased all-cause mortality. Nevertheless, the links between adult height and longevity become tenuous if certain confounders (e.g. BMI, SES, educational attainment, etc.) are allowed for. Furthermore, numerous studies have found that like excess weight, tallness is costly in terms of longevity in late ontogeny, and shorter people tend to outlive their taller peers, especially if they are slim and maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle. Therefore, there is currently a lack of agreement in the literature as to whether and how body height and lifespan are linked. The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between adult stature and longevity on the basis of a large sample from a population-based cohort study. Data on declared height and exact dates of birth and death were available from 480,493 men and 364,666 women who died in the years 2004-2008 in Poland. To control for secular changes, the sample was divided into fifteen birth cohorts and each group was subsequently split into five height categories using pentiles, separately for both sexes. The analysis has revealed an inverse relationship between height and lifespan in men and women. However, after controlling for secular changes in height, the relationship turned out to be very weak and linear in men, and inverted U-shaped in women. In general, taller individuals had lower age at death compared to shorter ones, and this relationship was more pronounced and consistent in men. To sum up, these findings do not comport with the traditional belief that taller individuals live longer. The role of several possible biological mechanisms pertinent to enhanced longevity in smaller individuals was emphasized, and these biological factors were discussed.

Height, height-related SNPs, and risk of non-melanoma skin cancer

Background:

Adult height has been associated with risk of several site-specific cancers, including melanoma. However, less attention has been given to non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC).

Methods:

We prospectively examined the risk of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC) in relation to adult height in the Nurses' Health Study (NHS, n=117 863) and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS, n=51 111). We also investigated the relationships between height-related genetic markers and risk of BCC and SCC in the genetic data sets of the NHS and HPFS (3898 BCC cases, and 8530 BCC controls; 527 SCC cases, and 8962 SCC controls).

Results:

After controlling for potential confounding factors, the hazard ratios were 1.09 (95% CI: 1.02, 1.15) and 1.10 (95% CI: 1.07, 1.13) for the associations between every 10 cm increase in height and risk of SCC and BCC respectively. None of the 687 height-related single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was significantly associated with the risk of SCC or BCC, nor were the genetic scores combining independent height-related loci.

Conclusions:

Our data from two large cohorts provide further evidence that height is associated with an increased risk of NMSC. More studies on height-related genetic loci and early-life exposures may help clarify the underlying mechanisms.

Chronobiological Hypothesis about the Association Between Height Growth Seasonality and Geographical Differences in Body Height According to Effective Day Length

Studies on growth hormone therapy in children have shown that height velocity is greater in summer than in winter and that this difference increases with latitude. It is hypothesized that summer daylight is a causative factor and that geographical distribution of body height will approximate the distribution of summer day length over time. This is an ecological analysis of prefecture-level data on the height of Japanese youth. Mesh climatic data of effective day length were collated. While height velocity was greatest during the summer, the height of Japanese youth was strongly and negatively correlated with the distribution of winter effective day length. Therefore, it is anticipated that summer height velocity is greater according to winter day length (dark period). This may be due to epigenetic modifications, involving reversible DNA methylation and thyroid hormone regulation found in the reproductive system of seasonal breeding vertebrates. If the function is applicable to humans, summer height growth may quantitatively increase with winter day length, and height growth seasonality can be explained by thyroid hormone activities that-induced by DNA methylation-change depending on the seasonal difference in day length. Moreover, geographical differences in body height may be caused by geographical differences in effective day length, which could influence melatonin secretion among subjects who spend a significant time indoors.

Structural brain development between childhood and adulthood: Convergence across four longitudinal samples

Longitudinal studies including brain measures acquired through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have enabled population models of human brain development, crucial for our understanding of typical development as well as neurodevelopmental disorders. Brain development in the first two decades generally involves early cortical grey matter volume (CGMV) increases followed by decreases, and monotonic increases in cerebral white matter volume (CWMV). However, inconsistencies regarding the precise developmental trajectories call into question the comparability of samples. This issue can be addressed by conducting a comprehensive study across multiple datasets from diverse populations. Here, we present replicable models for gross structural brain development between childhood and adulthood (ages 8-30years) by repeating analyses in four separate longitudinal samples (391 participants; 852 scans). In addition, we address how accounting for global measures of cranial/brain size affect these developmental trajectories. First, we found evidence for continued development of both intracranial volume (ICV) and whole brain volume (WBV) through adolescence, albeit following distinct trajectories. Second, our results indicate that CGMV is at its highest in childhood, decreasing steadily through the second decade with deceleration in the third decade, while CWMV increases until mid-to-late adolescence before decelerating. Importantly, we show that accounting for cranial/brain size affects models of regional brain development, particularly with respect to sex differences. Our results increase confidence in our knowledge of the pattern of brain changes during adolescence, reduce concerns about discrepancies across samples, and suggest some best practices for statistical control of cranial volume and brain size in future studies.

The association between maternal nutrition and lifestyle during pregnancy and 2-year-old offspring adiposity: analysis from the ROLO study

Aim

To examine the association between maternal nutrition and lifestyle factors and offspring adiposity, using baseline and 2-year postpartum follow-up data from a randomised control trial of low glycaemic index diet.

Subject and methods

Food diaries and lifestyle questionnaires were completed during pregnancy and infant feeding and maternal lifestyle questionnaires 2 years postpartum for 281 mother and infant pairs from the ROLO study. Maternal anthropometry was measured throughout pregnancy and infant and maternal anthropometry was measured 2 years postpartum.

Results

Maternal 2 year postpartum body mass index (BMI) was positively associated with offspring BMI-for-age z-score (B = 0.105, p = 0.015). Trimester 2 saturated fat intake was positively associated with offspring subscapular:triceps skinfold ratio (B = 0.018, p = 0.001). Trimester 1 glycaemic index was also positively associated with offspring sum of subscapular and triceps skinfolds (B = 0.009, p = 0.029).

Conclusions

Maternal BMI 2 years postpartum was positively associated with offspring BMI. Pregnancy saturated fat intake was positively and polyunsaturated fat negatively associated with offspring adiposity. While further research is necessary, pregnancy and the postpartum period may be early opportunities to combat childhood obesity.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10389-016-0740-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Socioeconomic disparities in preterm birth and birth weight in a non-Western developed setting: evidence from Hong Kong's 'Children of 1997' birth cohort

BACKGROUND

Preterm birth (PTB), low birth weight and small-for-gestational age (SGA) are associated with lower socioeconomic position (SEP) in developed Western settings, but it is unclear if such disparities persist to the same extent elsewhere, and whether associations differ by measure of SEP used. Here, we assessed the association of SEP with PTB, birth weight and SGA in the recently developed non-Western setting of Hong Kong where few women smoke or use alcohol.

METHODS

We used multivariable logistic and linear regression to assess the associations of parental and neighbourhood SEP with PTB, birth weight and SGA among 8173 singleton births from the Hong Kong population-representative 'Children of 1997' birth cohort.

RESULTS

The only measure of SEP associated with PTB was type of housing adjusted for maternal age (p for trend 0.046). Highest paternal education had a small positive association with birth weight adjusted for gestational age (21 g, 95% CI 0.2 to 43 g for ≥grade 12 compared with ≤grade 9), as did residing in private compared with public housing (21 g, 95% CI 3 to 39 g). However, these associations did not persist after adjusting for mother's age. Lower neighbourhood Gini coefficient adjusted for mother's age was associated with a lower risk of SGA (OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.98). None of these associations remained after adjusting for multiple comparisons.

CONCLUSIONS

PTB, birth weight and SGA may be less clearly socially patterned in Hong Kong than other developed settings, highlighting the need for setting-specific interventions to prevent adverse birth outcomes.

Relationship of Height to Site-Specific Fracture Risk in Postmenopausal Women

Height has been associated with increased risk of fracture of the neck of femur. However, information on the association of height with fractures at other sites is limited and conflicting. A total of 796,081 postmenopausal women, who reported on health and lifestyle factors including a history of previous fractures and osteoporosis, were followed for 8 years for incident fracture at various sites by record linkage to National Health Service hospital admission data. Adjusted relative risks of fracture at different sites per 10-cm increase in height were estimated using Cox regression. Numbers with site-specific fractures were: humerus (3036 cases), radius and/or ulna (1775), wrist (9684), neck of femur (5734), femur (not neck) (713), patella (649), tibia and/or fibula (1811), ankle (5523), and clavicle/spine/rib (2174). The risk of fracture of the neck of femur increased with increasing height (relative risk [RR] = 1.48 per 10-cm increase, 99% confidence interval [CI] 1.39-1.57) and the proportional increase in risk was significantly greater than for all other fracture sites (pheterogeneity < 0.001). For the other sites, fracture risk also increased with height (RR = 1.15 per 10 cm, CI 1.12-1.18), but there was only very weak evidence of a possible difference in risk between the sites (pheterogeneity = 0.03). In conclusion, taller women are at increased risk of fracture, especially of the neck of femur.

Different effects of living conditions on the variation in BMI and height in children before the onset of puberty

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

Biological indicators of children's growth, such as the mean values for both height and weight, are often used as markers of change in living conditions. However, little is known about how the quality of life affects the variation in height and weight. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the variation in height and body mass index (BMI) in Polish children between 1966 and 2012. During this period, Poland underwent vast political and socioeconomic changes.

SUBJECTS/METHODS

The study included 5597 boys and 5479 girls aged 7-8 years of age. Socioeconomic status (SES) was defined in three categories: high, medium and low.

RESULTS

Between 1966 and 2012, the mean values for height and BMI significantly increased in both sexes (P<0.001). The variation of these two parameters, however, showed a different pattern. Whereas the variation in Z-values for height remained unchanged in both sexes, the variation in BMI increased in boys (P<0.01) but not in girls. SES affected the variation in Z-BMI in 1978 in both sexes (P<0.001), whereas variation in Z-height between SES categories remained unchanged across all years of surveys in boys. Before the political transformation, significant regional differences were observed in the variances of Z-BMI (P<0.05) but not of Z-height. This pattern changed after the political transformation, when regional differences in variances of Z-BMI disappeared.

CONCLUSIONS

It is concluded that the mean values and the variation of BMI are affected by a changing quality of life, whereas the variation in height is usually independent of living conditions.