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Early growth and body composition in infancy
Sirinuch Chomtho1, Jonathan C K Wells, Peter S Davies
1MRC Childhood Nutrition Research Centre, Institute of Child Health, University College London, UK. s.chomtho@ich.ucl.ac.uk
Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
|June 19, 2009
Summary
Higher birth weight in infants is linked to increased fat mass by three months. Rapid weight gain during infancy is associated with both increased fat and lean mass, challenging direct tracking of lean mass from fetal life.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Human Growth and Development
- Body Composition Analysis
Background:
- Early nutrition programming influences long-term health outcomes.
- Understanding infant growth patterns is crucial for identifying potential health risks.
- Body composition in infancy serves as an early indicator of metabolic health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between early infant growth and body composition.
- To explore how birth weight and early weight gain affect fat mass index (FMI) and lean mass index (LMI) at 12 weeks.
- To examine if lean mass tracks from fetal development to early infancy.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 150 healthy, full-term infants (born 1985-1993) had body composition measured using stable isotopes at 12 weeks.
- Fat mass index (FMI) and lean mass index (LMI) standard deviation scores (SDS) were calculated.
- Statistical analyses examined associations between birth weight SDS, weight gain SDS (birth-12 weeks), and FMI/LMI SDS.
Main Results:
- Birth weight SDS positively correlated with FMI SDS at 12 weeks (0.26 SDS increase per 1 SDS increase in birth weight).
- Weight gain SDS from birth to 12 weeks positively correlated with both FMI SDS (0.68 SDS increase per 1 SDS gain) and LMI SDS (0.48 SDS increase per 1 SDS gain).
- Associations remained significant and independent of gender, parity, and infant diet.
Conclusions:
- Higher birth weight is associated with increased infant fat mass at three months.
- Rapid infant weight gain in the first three months is linked to gains in both fat and lean mass.
- The study does not support the hypothesis that lean mass tracks directly from fetal life to childhood.
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