1
|
Guo M, Diaz‐Canestro C, Pugliese NR, Paneni F, Montero D. Lean body mass and the cardiorespiratory phenotype: An ethnic-specific relationship in Hans Chinese women and men. J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle 2024; 15:963-974. [PMID: 38632694 PMCID: PMC11154775 DOI: 10.1002/jcsm.13464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 12/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Lean body mass (LBM) and the functional capacity of cardiovascular (CV) and respiratory systems constitute a female-specific relationship in European-American individuals. Whether this recent finding be extrapolated to the world's largest ethnic group, that is, Hans Chinese (HC, a population characterized by low LBM), is unknown. METHODS Healthy HC adults (n = 144, 50% ♀) closely matched by sex, age and physical activity were included. Total and regional (leg, arm and trunk) LBM and body composition were measured via dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Cardiac structure, stiffness, central/peripheral haemodynamics and peak O2 consumption (VO2peak) were assessed via transthoracic echocardiography and pulmonary gas analyses at rest and during exercise up to peak effort. Regression analyses determined the sex-specific relationship of LBM with cardiac and aerobic phenotypes. RESULTS Total and regional LBM were lower and body fat percentage higher in women compared with men (P < 0.001). In both sexes, total LBM positively associated with left ventricular (LV) mass and peak volumes (r ≥ 0.33, P ≤ 0.005) and negatively with LV end-systolic and central arterial stiffness (r ≥ -0.34, P ≤ 0.004). Total LBM strongly associated with VO2peak (r ≥ 0.60, P < 0.001) and peak cardiac output (r ≥ 0.40, P < 0.001) in women and men. Among regional LBM, leg LBM prominently associated with the arterio-venous O2 difference at peak exercise in both sexes (r ≥ 0.43, P < 0.001). Adjustment by adiposity or CV risk factors did not modify the results. CONCLUSIONS LBM independently determines internal cardiac dimensions, ventricular mass, distensibility and the capacity to deliver and consume O2 in HC adults irrespective of sex.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Meihan Guo
- Faculty of MedicineHong Kong UniversityHong Kong
| | - Candela Diaz‐Canestro
- Faculty of MedicineHong Kong UniversityHong Kong
- Department of Medicine, School of Clinical MedicineHong Kong UniversityHong Kong
| | | | - Francesco Paneni
- Center for Translational and Experimental Cardiology (CTEC), Zurich University HospitalUniversity of ZurichZurichSwitzerland
- University Heart Center, University Hospital ZurichUniversity of ZurichZurichSwitzerland
| | - David Montero
- Faculty of MedicineHong Kong UniversityHong Kong
- Department of Medicine, School of Clinical MedicineHong Kong UniversityHong Kong
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Sohn K. Is leg length a biomarker of early life conditions? Evidence from a historically short population. Am J Hum Biol 2015; 27:538-45. [DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.22682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2014] [Revised: 12/21/2014] [Accepted: 12/29/2014] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Kitae Sohn
- Department of Economics; Konkuk University; 120 Neungdong-ro Gwangjin-gu Seoul 143-701 South Korea
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Sun Y, Jiang CQ, Cheng KK, Zhang WS, Leung GM, Lam TH, Schooling CM. Leg length is associated with lower values of inflammatory markers in older Chinese: The Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study. Ann Hum Biol 2014; 42:143-9. [PMID: 25007857 DOI: 10.3109/03014460.2014.932009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In developed western populations, longer legs are a biomarker of better childhood conditions and negatively associated with cardiovascular disease risk factors. These associations are less obvious in non-western settings. However, early life is also a key immune system development phase. AIM To examine the associations of height, leg length, sitting height and leg length/sitting height ratio with inflammatory markers (white blood, lymphocyte and granulocyte cell counts and C-reactive protein (CRP)) in a developing population of southern China. SUBJECTS AND METHODS This study used multivariable linear regression to examine the adjusted associations in 30,499 Chinese (50+ years). RESULTS Height z-score was associated with lower white blood, lymphocyte and granulocyte cell counts. Leg length z-score was associated with lower white blood, lymphocyte and granulocyte cell counts and CRP. Sitting height z-score was associated with lower white blood and granulocyte cell counts, but not with lymphocyte cell count or CRP. Leg length/sitting height ratio z-score was associated with lower white blood, lymphocyte and granulocyte cell counts and CRP. CONCLUSION Factors enabling more early growth may also lead to changes in immunity that are associated with reduced CVD risk.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yangbo Sun
- Lifestyle and Lifecourse Epidemiology Group, School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong , SAR , PR China
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
4
|
Zhong Y, Jiang CQ, Cheng KK, Zhang WS, Liu B, Jin YL, Lam TH, Leung GM, Schooling CM. Height, its components, and coagulability among older Chinese: the Guangzhou biobank cohort study. Am J Hum Biol 2014; 26:603-8. [PMID: 24909113 DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.22568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2014] [Revised: 04/21/2014] [Accepted: 05/12/2014] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The causal role of some cardiovascular risk factors, such as HDL cholesterol, has been increasingly challenged and attention is returning to all elements of Virchow's triad, i.e., hypercoagulability (including viscosity) as well as endothelial function and blood flow. We examined the life course origins of coagulability. METHODS We used multivariable linear regression to assess whether childhood influences, proxied by height and its components, were associated with hematocrit (Hct), hemoglobin (HGB), and other hematological parameters in 28,595 older Chinese adults (mean age = 61.8 years) from the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study. RESULTS Adjusted for age, sex, and recruitment phase, leg length was negatively associated with platelets (PLT) (-0.83 × 10(9) /l per centimeter (cm), 95% confidence interval (CI) -1.01 to -0.65). Sitting height and height were positively associated with Hct (0.05% per cm, 95% CI 0.04-0.07 for sitting height; 0.02% per cm, 95% CI 0.01-0.02 for height), HGB (0.21 g/l per cm, 95% CI 0.17-0.25; 0.07 g/l per cm, 95% CI 0.04-0.09) and negatively associated with PLT (-1.2 × 10(9) /l per cm, 95% CI -1.4 to -1.0; -0.83 × 10(9) /l per cm, 95% CI -0.95 to -0.70). Further adjustment for potential confounders did little to change the estimates. CONCLUSIONS For the first time we provide anthropometric evidence for the different roles of prepubertal and pubertal influences in relation to Hct and HGB. Whether factors that promote leg growth but reduce growth of sitting height may help to prevent cardiovascular events, via effects on hypercoagulability or viscosity, overall or in specific subgroups, remains to be determined.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Y Zhong
- School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, SAR, China
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
Regnault N, Kleinman KP, Rifas-Shiman SL, Langenberg C, Lipshultz SE, Gillman MW. Components of height and blood pressure in childhood. Int J Epidemiol 2014; 43:149-59. [PMID: 24413933 DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyt248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In children being taller is associated with higher blood pressure (BP), but few studies have divided height into its components: trunk and leg length. We examined the associations of total height, trunk length and leg length with systolic BP (SBP), diastolic BP (DBP) and pulse pressure (PP) at early childhood and mid-childhood visits, as well as change between the two visits. METHODS We obtained five measures of SBP and DBP at the early childhood visit (N = 1153, follow-up rate = 54%) and at the mid-childhood visit (N = 1086, follow-up rate = 51%) respectively, in Project Viva, a US cohort study. We measured total height and sitting height (a measure of trunk length that includes head and neck) and calculated leg length as the difference between the two. Using mixed models, we adjusted the cross-sectional analyses for leg length when trunk length was the exposure of interest, and vice versa. We also adjusted for maternal race/ethnicity, child age, sex, overall adiposity and BP measurement conditions. RESULTS At the mid-childhood visit, total height was positively associated with SBP [0.34 (0.24; 0.45) mmHg/cm] but not with DBP [0.07 (-0.003; 0.15)]. In models examining trunk and leg length separately, each was positively associated with SBP [0.72 (0.52; 0.92) and 0.33 (0.16; 0.49) respectively]. In a fully adjusted model with both leg and trunk length, only trunk length remained associated with BP. For a given leg length, a 1-cm increment in trunk length was associated with a 0.63-mmHg (0.42; 0.83) higher SBP and a 0.17-mmHg (0.02; 0.31) higher DBP. For a given trunk length, however, the associations of leg length with SBP [0.13 (-0.03; 0.30)] and with DBP [0.002 (-0.11; 0.12)] were null. These patterns were similar at the early childhood visit. CONCLUSIONS Children with greater trunk lengths have higher BPs, perhaps because of the additional pressure needed to overcome gravity to perfuse the brain.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nolwenn Regnault
- Obesity Prevention Program, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, USA, MRC Epidemiology Unit, Addenbrooke's Hospital, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK, Department of Pediatrics, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
6
|
Kwok MK, Leung GM, Lam TH, Leung SSL, Schooling CM. Grandparental education, parental education and child height: evidence from Hong Kong's "Children of 1997" birth cohort. Ann Epidemiol 2013; 23:475-84. [PMID: 23889857 DOI: 10.1016/j.annepidem.2013.05.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2012] [Revised: 05/24/2013] [Accepted: 05/29/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Adult height is the sum of growth during fetal, infancy, childhood, and puberty, controlled by different biological factors. In long-term developed Western populations, height is positively associated with socioeconomic position, but less clearly so in recently developing populations. We aimed to elucidate socioeconomic influences on height at different growth phases. METHODS We examined the associations of parents' education and grandparents' education with birth weight and height gain z-scores during infancy (birth to <2 years), childhood (2 to <8 years), and puberty (8 to <14 years) adjusted for parents' height using generalized estimating equations in Hong Kong's "Children of 1997" birth cohort (n = 8264). RESULTS Parents' education, but not grandparents', was positively associated with birth weight (z-score, 0.07; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.01-0.12 for grade ≥12 compared with grade ≤9) and height gain during infancy (0.11; 95% CI, 0.05-0.18), adjusted for gender, gestational age, initial size, parity, parents' age, parents' birthplace, and parents' height. Conversely, similarly adjusted, grandparents' education, but not parents', was associated with height gain during childhood (0.11; 95% CI, 0.04-0.18). CONCLUSIONS Parental education was associated with fetal and infant, but not childhood, linear growth, suggesting the mechanism underlying socioeconomic influences on height at different growth phases may be contextually specific.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Man Ki Kwok
- Life Course and Lifestyle Epidemiology Group, School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
7
|
Johnston LW, Harris SB, Retnakaran R, Gerstein HC, Zinman B, Hamilton J, Hanley AJ. Short leg length, a marker of early childhood deprivation, is associated with metabolic disorders underlying type 2 diabetes: the PROMISE cohort study. Diabetes Care 2013; 36:3599-606. [PMID: 24089539 PMCID: PMC3816896 DOI: 10.2337/dc13-0254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Short leg length, a marker of early childhood deprivation, has been used in studies of the association of early life conditions with adult chronic disease risk. The objective of this study was to determine the cross-sectional associations of leg length with measures of insulin sensitivity and β-cell function. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Subjects (n = 462) at risk for type 2 diabetes were recruited into the PROspective Metabolism and ISlet cell Evaluation (PROMISE) longitudinal cohort. Leg length was calculated from sitting and standing height at the 3-year clinical examination. Glucose tolerance status was determined using an oral glucose tolerance test. Insulin sensitivity was assessed using homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and the Matsuda insulin sensitivity index (ISI), while the insulinogenic index over HOMA-IR (IGI/IR) and the insulin secretion sensitivity index 2 (ISSI-2) determined β-cell function. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted, adjusting for covariates including age, sex, ethnicity, family history of diabetes, waist, and weight. RESULTS Leg length and leg-to-height ratio were significantly associated with HOMA-IR (β = -0.037, β = -10.49, respectively; P < 0.0001), ISI (β = 0.035, β = 8.83, respectively; P < 0.0001), IGI/IR (β = 0.021, P < 0.05; β = 7.60, P < 0.01, respectively), and ISSI-2 (β = 0.01, P < 0.03; β = 3.34, P < 0.01, respectively) after adjustment for covariates. The association of shorter leg length with lower insulin sensitivity was most evident for those with high waist circumferences. CONCLUSIONS Shorter legs were independently associated with lower insulin sensitivity and β-cell function, suggesting that early childhood deprivation may increase the risk of developing diabetes.
Collapse
|
8
|
Lambertz D, Pérot C, Canon F, Dantas MLM, Manhães-de-Castro R, Ferraz KM. Influence of muscle activity on musculotendinous stiffness quantification in stunted, prepubertal children. J Electromyogr Kinesiol 2013; 23:1052-6. [PMID: 23932796 DOI: 10.1016/j.jelekin.2013.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2013] [Revised: 06/10/2013] [Accepted: 07/09/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The quick-release technique to estimate musculotendinous (MT) stiffness has been extensively used over the last years, in both animals and humans, to gain insights in the adaptive process of the series elastic component (SEC). Recently, MT stiffness quantification, i.e., SEC behavior, has been revisited for subjects not able to fully activate their muscles (effects of long-term spaceflight or non-mature muscles). Such a phenomenon can also be encountered in stunted children. So, the aim of the present study was to analyze the effect of stunting on MT stiffness taking into account possible defect in muscle activation. For this study, 20 eutrophic children (EU) with an average age of 9years±4months were compared to 11age matched stunted children (S) evaluated by the height-to-age index. The MT stiffness index was obtained with regard to stiffness-torque and stiffness-soleus EMG relationships. The children of the S group presented a significantly lower Maximal Voluntary Contraction (MVC) in plantar flexion in comparison with children of the EU group (-37.8%). The significantly lower MT stiffness index for S children (-42.6%) was evidenced only when quantified with regard to the stiffness-soleus EMG relationship (66.5±42.8 vs. 38.2±19.9 Nmrad(-1)%(-1)). Possible delay in fiber type differentiation or tendinous structure maturation can account for the lower MT stiffness index in S children. In conclusion, stunting during early childhood delays the differentiation and maturation processes of musculotendinous structures as shown by the lower MT stiffness quantified with regards to muscle activity, also altered for stunted prepubertal children.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Lambertz
- Departamento de Nutrição, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Brazil; Professor Visitante Estrangeiro (PVE)-CAPES, Brazil.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
9
|
Pomeroy E, Stock JT, Stanojevic S, Miranda JJ, Cole TJ, Wells JCK. Trade-offs in relative limb length among Peruvian children: extending the thrifty phenotype hypothesis to limb proportions. PLoS One 2012; 7:e51795. [PMID: 23272169 PMCID: PMC3521697 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0051795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2012] [Accepted: 11/12/2012] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and Methods Both the concept of ‘brain-sparing’ growth and associations between relative lower limb length, childhood environment and adult disease risk are well established. Furthermore, tibia length is suggested to be particularly plastic under conditions of environmental stress. The mechanisms responsible are uncertain, but three hypotheses may be relevant. The ‘thrifty phenotype’ assumes that some components of growth are selectively sacrificed to preserve more critical outcomes, like the brain. The ‘distal blood flow’ hypothesis assumes that blood nutrients decline with distance from the heart, and hence may affect limbs in relation to basic body geometry. Temperature adaptation predicts a gradient of decreased size along the limbs reflecting decreasing tissue temperature/blood flow. We examined these questions by comparing the size of body segments among Peruvian children born and raised in differentially stressful environments. In a cross-sectional sample of children aged 6 months to 14 years (n = 447) we measured head circumference, head-trunk height, total upper and lower limb lengths, and zeugopod (ulna and tibia) and autopod (hand and foot) lengths. Results Highland children (exposed to greater stress) had significantly shorter limbs and zeugopod and autopod elements than lowland children, while differences in head-trunk height were smaller. Zeugopod elements appeared most sensitive to environmental conditions, as they were relatively shorter among highland children than their respective autopod elements. Discussion The results suggest that functional traits (hand, foot, and head) may be partially protected at the expense of the tibia and ulna. The results do not fit the predictions of the distal blood flow and temperature adaptation models as explanations for relative limb segment growth under stress conditions. Rather, our data support the extension of the thrifty phenotype hypothesis to limb growth, and suggest that certain elements of limb growth may be sacrificed under tough conditions to buffer more functional traits.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emma Pomeroy
- Division of Biological Anthropology, Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Bogin B, Baker J. Low birth weight does not predict the ontogeny of relative leg length of infants and children: an allometric analysis of the NHANES III sample. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2012; 148:487-94. [PMID: 22552747 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.22064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2011] [Accepted: 03/01/2012] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Previous research links both low birth weight (LBW) and relative leg length (RLL) to a similar set of adult pathologies, including type II diabetes, coronary vascular disease, and some cancers. Historically, LBW has been frequently used as a broad indicator of the quality of the intrauterine environment, while RLL has been considered a sensitive measure of childhood environmental quality. While these observations have been taken to suggest that these measures reflect independent exposures at different life-stages, their mutual association with a similar set of later pathologies makes this assumption less certain than it may have previously seemed. Nationally representative data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) are used to test the hypothesis that LBW predicts reductions in the development of leg length relative to stature. After controls for important socioeconomic exposures that might confound measurement of such a relationship, we find statistical and biological evidence that variation in birth weight and variation in the development of leg length relative to stature (RLL) are independent. The results suggest that these two measures may represent independent information on prenatal and postnatal environmental quality.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Barry Bogin
- School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Leicestershire, UK.
| | | |
Collapse
|
11
|
Matijasevich A, Howe LD, Tilling K, Santos IS, Barros AJD, Lawlor DA. Maternal education inequalities in height growth rates in early childhood: 2004 Pelotas birth cohort study. Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol 2012; 26:236-49. [PMID: 22471683 PMCID: PMC3491696 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3016.2011.01251.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Socio-economic inequalities in attained height have been reported in many countries. The aim of this study was to explore the age at which maternal education inequalities in child height emerge among children from a middle-income country. Using data from the 2004 Pelotas cohort study from Brazil we modelled individual height growth trajectories in 2106 boys and 1947 girls from birth to 4 years using a linear spline mixed-effects model. We examined the associations of maternal education with birth length and trajectories of growth in length/height, and explored the effect of adjusting for a number of potential confounder or mediator factors. We showed linear and positive associations of maternal education with birth length and length/height growth rates at 0-3 months and 12-29/32 months with very little association at 3-12 months, particularly in boys. By age 4 years the mean height of boys was 101.06 cm (SE = 0.28) in the lowest and 104.20 cm (SE = 0.15) in the highest education category (mean difference 3.14 cm, SE = 0.32, P < 0.001). Among girls the mean height was 100.02 cm (SE = 0.27) and 103.03 cm (SE = 0.15) in the lowest and highest education categories, respectively (mean difference 3.01 cm, SE = 0.31, P < 0.001). For both boys and girls there was on average a 3-cm difference between the extreme education categories. Adjusting for maternal height reduced the observed birth length differences across maternal education categories, but differences in postnatal growth rates persisted. Our data demonstrate an increase in the absolute and relative inequality in height after birth; inequality increases from approximately 0.2 standard deviations of birth length to approximately 0.7 standard deviations of height at age 4, indicating that height inequality, which was already present at birth, widened through differential growth rates to age 2 years.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Matijasevich
- Postgraduate Programme in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, RuaMarechal Deodoro 1160, Pelotas, Brazil.
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
12
|
Paiva MDG, Souza TOL, Canon F, Pérot C, Xavier LCC, Ferraz KM, Osório MM, Manhães-de-Castro R, Lambertz D. Stunting delays maturation of triceps surae mechanical properties and motor performance in prepubertal children. Eur J Appl Physiol 2012; 112:4053-61. [DOI: 10.1007/s00421-012-2387-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2011] [Accepted: 03/15/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
|
13
|
Kavikondala S, Jiang CQ, Zhang WS, Cheng KK, Lam TH, Leung GM, Schooling CM. Intergenerational influences on diabetes in a developing population: the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study. Am J Hum Biol 2011; 23:747-54. [PMID: 21987430 DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.21206] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2011] [Revised: 06/07/2011] [Accepted: 06/13/2011] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Intergenerational "mismatch" and/or growth conditions may be relevant to the epidemic of diabetes in developing populations. In a rapidly developing southern Chinese population, we tested whether maternal environment, proxied by maternal literacy, or family socio-economic position (SEP), proxied by paternal literacy, were associated with fasting glucose and diabetes. To assess if intergenerational mismatch contributed, we tested whether the associations varied by life course SEP. METHODS In 19,818 older (≥50 years) adults from the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study (phases 2 and 3), we used censored and logistic regression to assess the associations of maternal and paternal literacy with fasting glucose, elevated fasting glucose and diabetes and whether these associations varied by sex, age or life course SEP. RESULTS Maternal, but not paternal, literacy was negatively associated with fasting plasma glucose (β-coefficient -0.06 mmol/l, 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.11 to -0.01) and elevated fasting glucose (odds ratio (OR) 0.92, 95% CI 0.86-0.99) adjusted for age, sex, study phase, life course SEP, childhood growth, adiposity, number of offspring, and birth order. Associations of maternal and paternal literacy with fasting glucose, elevated fasting glucose and diabetes did not vary by sex, age or life course SEP. CONCLUSION Offspring of literate mothers had lower risk for impaired glucose tolerance than offspring of illiterate mothers. Being raised by literate mothers may increase the likelihood of children with higher SEP and lower long-term disease risk, or better maternal conditions over generations may be associated with lower fasting glucose.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S Kavikondala
- Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, China
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
14
|
Socioeconomic influences at different life stages on health in Guangzhou, China. Soc Sci Med 2011; 72:1884-92. [DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.03.041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2010] [Revised: 03/07/2011] [Accepted: 03/26/2011] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
|
15
|
Schooling CM, Jiang C, Zhang W, Lam TH, Cheng KK, Leung GM. Adolescent Build and Diabetes: The Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study. Ann Epidemiol 2011; 21:61-6. [DOI: 10.1016/j.annepidem.2010.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2010] [Revised: 08/11/2010] [Accepted: 08/26/2010] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
|
16
|
Leg length and age of puberty among men and women from a developing population: The Guangzhou Biobank Cohort study. Am J Hum Biol 2010; 22:683-7. [DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.21067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
|
17
|
Schooling CM, Jiang CQ, Lam TH, Cowling BJ, Au Yeung SL, Zhang WS, Cheng KK, Leung GM. Estimated birth weight and adult cardiovascular risk factors in a developing southern Chinese population: a cross sectional study. BMC Public Health 2010; 10:270. [PMID: 20492733 PMCID: PMC2887395 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-10-270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2010] [Accepted: 05/24/2010] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Birth weight is negatively associated with cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, but the associations are less well-established in developing populations where birth weight is often unavailable. We studied the association of birth weight and cardiovascular risk, using birth rank as an instrumental variable, in Southern China. Methods We used published data on birth weight by birth rank from an appropriate population and baseline data from the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study phases 2 & 3 (2005-8) to examine the adjusted associations, using instrumental variable analysis, of birth weight with clinically measured cardiovascular risk factors and the metabolic syndrome in older (≥ 50 years) men (n = 5,051) and women (n = 13,907). Results Estimated birth weight was associated with lower blood pressure (systolic -0.25 mm Hg 95% confidence interval (CI), -0.53 to 0.03 and diastolic -0.33 mm Hg 95% CI -0.48 to -0.18 per standard deviation higher birth weight), but had little association with glucose, lipids, waist-hip ratio, body mass index or the metabolic syndrome, adjusted for age, sex, early environment and number of offspring. Conclusion Birth weight may impact blood pressure; however associations of birth weight with other cardiovascular risk factors may not be related to foetal exposures, but speculatively could be an historical co-incidence, with corresponding implications for prevention.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- C M Schooling
- School of Public Health, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
18
|
Bogin B, Varela-Silva MI. Leg length, body proportion, and health: a review with a note on beauty. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2010; 7:1047-75. [PMID: 20617018 PMCID: PMC2872302 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph7031047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 209] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2009] [Revised: 01/28/2010] [Accepted: 03/08/2010] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Decomposing stature into its major components is proving to be a useful strategy to assess the antecedents of disease, morbidity and death in adulthood. Human leg length (femur + tibia), sitting height (trunk length + head length) and their proportions, for example, (leg length/stature), or the sitting height ratio (sitting height/stature x 100), among others) are associated with epidemiological risk for overweight (fatness), coronary heart disease, diabetes, liver dysfunction and certain cancers. There is also wide support for the use of relative leg length as an indicator of the quality of the environment for growth during infancy, childhood and the juvenile years of development. Human beings follow a cephalo-caudal gradient of growth, the pattern of growth common to all mammals. A special feature of the human pattern is that between birth and puberty the legs grow relatively faster than other post-cranial body segments. For groups of children and youth, short stature due to relatively short legs (i.e., a high sitting height ratio) is generally a marker of an adverse environment. The development of human body proportions is the product of environmental x genomic interactions, although few if any specific genes are known. The HOXd and the short stature homeobox-containing gene (SHOX) are genomic regions that may be relevant to human body proportions. For example, one of the SHOX related disorders is Turner syndrome. However, research with non-pathological populations indicates that the environment is a more powerful force influencing leg length and body proportions than genes. Leg length and proportion are important in the perception of human beauty, which is often considered a sign of health and fertility.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Barry Bogin
- Health & Lifespan Research Centre, School of Sport, Exercise & Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE11 3TU, UK; E-Mail:
| | - Maria Inês Varela-Silva
- Health & Lifespan Research Centre, School of Sport, Exercise & Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE11 3TU, UK; E-Mail:
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Stinson S. Nutritional, developmental, and genetic influences on relative sitting height at high altitude. Am J Hum Biol 2009; 21:606-13. [DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.20918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
|