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Body Composition and Circulating Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids at Age 6 Years: A Longitudinal Pilot Study

Nuria Sanz1, Rita Malpique1,2, Cristina Sierra3

  • 1Endocrinology Department, Pediatric Research Institute Sant Joan de Déu, University of Barcelona, Esplugues, Spain.

Hormone Research in Paediatrics
|March 7, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Maternal polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) status during pregnancy did not impact child body composition at age 6. However, maternal and child PUFA levels showed a correlation, possibly due to shared dietary habits.

Area of Science:

  • Nutrition Science
  • Pediatric Health
  • Human Physiology

Background:

  • Maternal polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) status during pregnancy is linked to birth outcomes and childhood adiposity.
  • Cord blood PUFA levels correlate with maternal PUFA and inversely with newborn abdominal adiposity.
  • Longitudinal studies on maternal, cord, and childhood PUFA associations with body composition are limited.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the longitudinal association between maternal, cord blood, and childhood polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) levels.
  • To examine the correlation of these PUFA levels with body composition and endocrine-metabolic variables in children at age 6 years.

Main Methods:

  • A longitudinal study of 16 healthy children, assessed from birth.
  • Circulating PUFA levels measured by gas chromatography in maternal, cord, and peripheral blood at age 6.
  • Body composition assessed by absorptiometry and endocrine-metabolic variables evaluated at age 6.

Main Results:

  • No significant associations were found between maternal, cord, or childhood circulating PUFA levels and body composition or endocrine-metabolic status at age 6.
  • Maternal levels of n-6 linoleic acid, total n-6, and the n-6:n-3 ratio correlated with corresponding PUFA levels in children at age 6.

Conclusions:

  • In this pilot study, maternal, cord blood, and childhood circulating PUFA do not appear to influence body composition or endocrine-metabolic status at age 6.
  • The observed correlation between maternal and child PUFA levels at age 6 may indicate shared nutritional habits.

Keywords:
AdiposityBody compositionMaternal dietPolyunsaturated fatty acids

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