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Updated: Mar 8, 2026
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Changes in body mass index during childhood and risk of various asthma phenotypes: a retrospective analysis
Julie Chastang1,2, Nour Baiz1, Laure Parnet1,2
1Faculté de médecine de l'hôpital Saint-Antoine, INSERM, Institut Pierre Louis d'Epidémiologie et de Santé Publique (IPLESP UMRS 1136 Equipe Epidémiologie des maladies allergiques et respiratoires (EPAR), UPMC Univ Paris 06, Universités Paris Sorbonne, Paris, France.
Insights
Changes in body mass index (BMI) from birth to childhood, including persistent underweight and overweight, significantly increase the risk of developing allergic asthma in children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Allergy and Immunology
- Public Health and Epidemiology
- Childhood Obesity Research
Background:
- Asthma is linked to both obesity and low birth weight.
- The relationship between body composition changes and asthma phenotypes requires further clarification.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between body mass index (BMI) changes from birth to childhood and specific asthma phenotypes.
- To clarify the role of corpulence fluctuations in asthma development.
Main Methods:
- Assessed BMI status at birth and around age 10 in 7781 schoolchildren.
- Categorized children based on BMI changes: persistent underweight, persistent overweight, and significant corpulence changes.
- Determined asthma phenotypes (allergic, non-allergic, exercise-induced) via clinical examination, skin prick tests, exercise challenge, and questionnaires.
Main Results:
- Persistent underweight and overweight, along with marked corpulence increases, elevated the risk of allergic asthma.
- In boys, low birth weight BMI, irrespective of later changes, was linked to higher allergic asthma risk.
- In girls, persistent overweight showed a significant association with increased allergic asthma risk.
Conclusions:
- Extreme BMI changes, persistent underweight, and persistent overweight during childhood are risk factors for allergic asthma.
- Specific BMI trajectories differentially impact allergic asthma risk in boys and girls.
- No significant associations were found between BMI changes and non-allergic or exercise-induced asthma.
Background:
It is known that asthma is related to obesity but also to small birthweight. The objective of this study was to clarify this issue by assessing the putative relationship between the changes in corpulence between birth and childhood as assessed by body mass index (BMI) and asthma phenotypes.
Methods:
The following status in corpulence was assessed in 7781 schoolchildren using quartile of BMI at birth and at around 10 (9-11 years): underweight at birth and at around 10, underweight at birth and overweight at around 10, overweight at birth and underweight at around 10, overweight at birth and at around 10, and the reference group constituted by all the other children in whom corpulence changes were not extreme. Determination of asthma phenotypes (allergic, non-allergic, and exercise-induced asthma) was based on a clinical examination including skin prick tests, an exercise challenge test, and a questionnaire.
Results:
The risk of allergic asthma was higher in children with persistent underweight, children with persistent overweight, and children becoming markedly more corpulent. In boys, the risk of allergic asthma was significantly higher for the less corpulent children at birth, regardless of whether they remained so or become overweight. In girls, the risk of allergic asthma was significantly higher in those with persistent overweight. There were no significant associations between BMI changes and non-allergic and exercise-induced asthma.
Conclusions:
We observed that some extreme changes in BMI, persistent underweight, and persistent overweight in childhood increased the risk of allergic asthma.
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