Sex Differences in the Relationship Between Childhood Self-Regulation and Adolescent Adiposity

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Adolescent Health
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Childhood self-regulation (CSR) is linked to better health outcomes.
• Previous research indicates CSR may predict adolescent adiposity.
• Differences in this relationship based on sex and baseline weight are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if childhood self-regulation predicts adolescent adiposity differently by sex.
• To examine if baseline weight status modifies the relationship between CSR and adolescent adiposity.
• To analyze longitudinal data from a community-based cohort.

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal study of 221 girls and 214 boys.
• Childhood self-regulation assessed at age 9 via parent/teacher reports of effortful control.
• Adiposity measured by BMI z-scores at age 9 and waist-to-height ratio at age 18.

Main Results:

• CSR showed a small inverse correlation with concurrent childhood BMI z-scores in girls only.
• Prospectively, CSR was inversely associated with late-adolescent waist-to-height ratio in both sexes, adjusting for childhood BMI z-scores.
• The prospective association was marginally stronger for girls with higher childhood BMI z-scores.

Conclusions:

• Childhood self-regulation inversely predicts changes in adiposity across adolescence for both sexes.
• The association between CSR and adiposity may be stronger for girls with higher baseline adiposity and potentially emerge earlier in girls.
• Further research is needed to explore the causal role of CSR and its link to behaviors like diet.