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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Exposure to secondhand smoke, exclusive breastfeeding and infant adiposity at age 5 months in the Healthy Start study
B F Moore1, K A Sauder2, A P Starling1
1Department of Epidemiology, Colorado School of Public Health, Aurora, CO, USA.
Insights
Secondhand smoke exposure combined with limited exclusive breastfeeding increased infant adiposity. Exclusive breastfeeding may mitigate the effects of secondhand smoke on infant body composition.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
Background:
- Infant adiposity is influenced by environmental factors, but interactions are understudied.
- Understanding these interactions is crucial for infant health.
- Few studies have explored combined environmental risk factors for infant adiposity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the interaction between secondhand smoke exposure and breastfeeding exclusivity.
- To determine the impact on infant adiposity at 5 months of age.
Main Methods:
- 813 mother-offspring pairs from the Healthy Start study were analyzed.
- Fat mass and fat-free mass were measured using air displacement plethysmography.
- Linear regression models examined associations between household smokers, breastfeeding exclusivity, and adiposity measures.
Main Results:
- A combination of secondhand smoke exposure and lack of exclusive breastfeeding was linked to higher infant adiposity.
- Among infants not exclusively breastfed, secondhand smoke exposure correlated with increased fat mass.
- Exclusive breastfeeding appeared to buffer the association between secondhand smoke and infant fat mass.
Conclusions:
- Findings suggest that exclusive breastfeeding may protect against increased adiposity in infants exposed to secondhand smoke.
- Public health strategies targeting smoking cessation and obesity prevention should consider these interactions.
- Interventions could focus on promoting exclusive breastfeeding alongside smoke-free environments for infants.
Background:
Infant adiposity may be influenced by several environmental risk factors, but few studies have explored these interactions.
Objective:
To examine the interaction between exposure to secondhand smoke and breastfeeding exclusivity on adiposity at age 5 months.
Methods:
We studied 813 mother-offspring pairs from the longitudinal Healthy Start study. Fat mass and fat-free mass were measured by air displacement plethysmography. Linear regression analyses were used to estimate the association between household smokers (none, any) with fat mass, fat-free mass, percent fat mass, weight-for-age z-score, weight-for-length z-score and BMI-for-age z-score as separate outcomes. Interaction terms between household smokers and breastfeeding exclusivity (<5 months, ≥5 months) were added to separate models.
Results:
The combination of exposure to secondhand smoke and a lack of exclusive breastfeeding was associated with increased adiposity at age 5 months. For example, within the not exclusively breastfed strata, exposure to secondhand smoke was associated with increased fat mass (0.1 kg; 95% CI: 0.0-0.2; P = 0.05). Conversely, within the exclusively breastfed strata, there was virtually no difference in fat mass between exposed and non-exposed infants (coefficient: -0.1; 95% CI: -0.3-0.1; P = 0.25).
Conclusions:
Our findings may inform new public health strategies with potential relevance for both smoking cessation and obesity prevention.
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