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Early Weight Gain Forecasts Accelerated Eruption of Deciduous Teeth and Later Overweight Status during the First Year
Julie A Mennella1, Ashley Reiter1, Benjamin Brewer2
1Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA.
Insights
Faster infant weight gain accelerates tooth eruption and increases overweight risk. This highlights potential early indicators for dental caries and childhood obesity, emphasizing the importance of monitoring infant growth velocity.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Human Growth and Development
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Early infant diet and weight gain velocity are critical factors influencing development.
- Understanding their independent and interactive effects on deciduous teeth emergence and overweight status is crucial for long-term health.
- Previous research has explored diet's impact, but the specific role of weight gain velocity requires further elucidation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the independent and interactive effects of early diet and weight gain velocity on deciduous teeth eruption during the first year of life.
- To determine the association between early weight gain velocity and overweight status in infants.
- To compare the effects of different infant formulas and breast milk on these developmental milestones.
Main Methods:
- A 1-year longitudinal trial involving monthly anthropometric and teeth eruption measurements in formula-fed infants.
- Generalized linear mixed models were employed to analyze the effects of diet and weight gain velocity on teeth eruption patterns.
- Exploratory analyses included data from breastfed infants to compare diet types and assess overweight status.
Main Results:
- Weight gain velocity independently affected the timing of first deciduous tooth eruption and the number of erupted teeth over time.
- Higher weight gain velocity between 0.5 and 4.5 months led to earlier and more frequent tooth eruption from 4.5 to 12.5 months.
- Infants with higher weight gain velocity showed more primary teeth eruption and a greater likelihood of being overweight at 10.5 months.
Conclusions:
- Accelerated infant weight gain velocity is a significant predictor of earlier primary tooth eruption.
- Faster weight gain is associated with an increased proportion of overweight infants, a risk factor for dental caries and obesity.
- These findings underscore the importance of monitoring infant growth velocity for early identification of potential health risks.
Objectives:
To determine whether early diet and weight gain velocity have independent or interactive effects on deciduous teeth emergence and overweight status during the first year.
Study Design:
Monthly measures of anthropometry and teeth eruption were collected during a 1-year trial (0.5-12.5 months) on formula-fed infants in which the type of randomized infant formula (cow milk or extensively hydrolyzed protein) diet significantly affected early (0.5-4.5 months) weight gain velocity. Generalized linear mixed models determined whether early diet and weight gain velocity had independent or interactive effects on timing and pattern of teeth eruption. Data from a trial on breastfed infants were used to explore effects of breast milk vs infant formula diets on teeth eruption and overweight status at 10.5 months.
Results:
Independent of infant formula diet, velocities of weight gain had direct effects on the age of first deciduous tooth (P < .04) and number of erupted teeth over time (P < .002). Greater velocity of weight gain from 0.5 to 4.5 months caused earlier and more frequent eruption of deciduous teeth from 4.5 to 12.5 months. Exploratory follow-up analyses on the breastfed and formula-fed diet groups found early weight gain velocity (P = .001), but not diet or its interaction, had significant effects. Infants in the upper quartile for weight gain velocity had more primary teeth (P = .002), and a greater proportion of them were overweight (P < .001) at 10.5 months.
Conclusions:
Faster weight gain accretion forecasted accelerated primary teeth eruption and increased percentage of children who were overweight-risk factors for dental caries and obesity.
Trial Registration:
ClinicalTrials.govNCT01700205 [2012-2015] and NCT01667549 [2012-2015].
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