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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Utilising infant growth to predict obesity status at 5 years
Lisaann S Gittner1, Susan M Ludington-Hoe, Harold S Haller
1Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing and Case Statistical Computing Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, United States. lsg1@zips.uakron.edu
Insights
Early infant growth patterns can predict childhood obesity. Identifying distinct body mass index (BMI) trajectories in the first year of life can help prevent later obesity.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Growth Monitoring
- Obesity Prevention
Background:
- Childhood obesity is a growing public health concern.
- Early identification of obesity risk factors is crucial for effective intervention.
- Understanding infant growth patterns may offer insights into future weight status.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if early life growth patterns in healthy infants can predict obesity at age 5.
- To identify specific body mass index (BMI) trajectories associated with later obesity.
- To explore the clinical significance of early BMI patterns for timely interventions.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective longitudinal analysis of body mass index (BMI) from birth to 5 years in healthy infants.
- Categorization of children into normal weight, overweight, obese, and morbidly obese groups at age 5 using World Health Organization (WHO) BMI criteria.
- Longitudinal repeated measures analysis of variance to identify significant divergences in BMI patterns between cohorts.
Main Results:
- Distinct differences in body mass index (BMI) growth patterns were observed before 1 year of age.
- Infants who were obese or morbidly obese at age 5 exhibited a significantly different BMI trajectory compared to normal-weight children.
- Early divergence in BMI patterns can be identified within the first year of life.
Conclusions:
- Early life growth patterns, specifically BMI trajectories, are clinically important predictors of childhood obesity.
- Identifying at-risk infants in the first year of life allows for targeted interventions to prevent future obesity.
- These findings support the integration of early growth monitoring into pediatric care for long-term health.
Aim:
This study determines if an early life growth pattern in healthy infants can predict obesity at age 5.
Methods:
Randomly selected from all healthy children born from 1997 to 2001 in a Midwestern US Health Maintenance Organization; growth patterns from birth to 5 years were described for children who were categorised by obesity classification at 5 years into normal weight (n = 61), overweight (n = 47), obese (n = 41) and morbidly obese (n = 72) cohorts using World Health Organization body mass index (BMI) criteria. A retrospective longitudinal analysis based on weighted least squares was performed on BMI by age (1 week; 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, 15 and 18 months; and 2, 3, 4 and 5 years). Graphs of the longitudinal repeated measures analysis of variance of means allowed identification of the earliest significant divergence of a cohort's average BMI pattern from other cohorts' patterns.
Results:
Distinctions in growth patterns and BMIs were evident before 1-year post-birth. Children who were obese or morbidly obese at 5 years demonstrated a BMI pattern that differed from children who were normal weight at 5 years.
Conclusions:
Identifying obesity development in early life may assist with prevention of later obesity. The results merit future study. An early life BMI growth pattern is clinically important because it permits discrimination of those who do and do not fit a normal weight pattern, guiding individualised interventions in the first year of life while precursors of later health are still forming.
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