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Published on: February 2, 2017
Diet quality at age 5-6 and cardiovascular outcomes in preadolescents
Jj Anne Krijger1, Mary Nicolaou1, Anh N Nguyen2
1Department of Public and Occupational Health, Amsterdam UMC - location AMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Insights
Higher childhood diet quality, assessed by the DASH score, is linked to better cardiovascular health in preadolescence. This includes lower BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure, and triglycerides, indicating long-term benefits of healthy eating habits.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Cardiovascular Health
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Childhood diet quality may influence cardiovascular disease risk factors.
- Evidence on whether superior diet quality prevents adverse cardiovascular outcomes in children is conflicting.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between diet quality at ages 5-6 years and cardiovascular outcomes after a 6-year follow-up period.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the Amsterdam Born Children and their Development study, a multi-ethnic birth cohort.
- Assessed dietary intake using a food frequency questionnaire and calculated diet quality via the DASH score and Child Diet Quality Score (CDQS).
- Examined cardiovascular outcomes (BMI, WC, BP, lipids, glucose, CIMT) at ages 11-12 in 869 children using multivariable regression models.
Main Results:
- Higher diet quality (DASH score) at age 5-6 correlated with lower BMI, waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and triglycerides at age 11-12.
- The CDQS showed similar trends, though less pronounced.
- No significant associations were found between diet quality and LDL-C, HDL-C, total cholesterol, fasting glucose, or CIMT.
Conclusions:
- Elevated diet quality in early childhood (ages 5-6) is predictive of improved cardiovascular health markers in preadolescence.
- These findings highlight the long-term impact of childhood nutrition on cardiovascular risk.
Background & Aims:
Specific dietary components during childhood may affect risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Whether overall higher diet quality prevents children from adverse cardiovascular outcomes remains contradictive. We aimed to examine the associations between diet quality at age 5-6 years and cardiovascular outcomes after a 6-year follow-up.
Methods:
We used data from the Amsterdam Born Children and their Development study, a multi-ethnic birth cohort. Dietary intake was assessed at age 5-6 using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire and diet quality was ascertained with the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) score and the child diet quality score (CDQS), an index specifically developed for Dutch school-age children. Cardiovascular outcomes were examined after 6-years follow-up (age 11-12, N = 869). Outcomes were body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), blood pressure (BP), lipid profile, fasting glucose and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT). Multivariable linear and logistic regression models adjusted for baseline value were used to examine associations between diet quality and cardiovascular outcomes.
Results:
Higher diet quality at age 5-6 was associated with lower BMI (DASH score: Δ quintile (Q) 5 and Q1: -0.35 kg/m2, p for trend = 0.016), lower WC (DASH score: Δ Q5 and Q1: -1.0 cm, p for trend = 0.028), lower systolic (DASH score: Δ Q5 and Q1: -2.7 mmHg, p for trend = 0.046) and diastolic BP (DASH score: Δ Q5 and Q1: -2.4, p for trend < 0.001) and with lower plasma triglycerides (DASH score: Δ Q5 and Q1: -0.20 mmol/L, p for trend = 0.032) after 6-years follow-up. Associations of the CDQS with these outcomes showed similar trends, but less pronounced. We found no statistically significant associations between diet quality and LDL-C, HDL-C, total cholesterol, fasting glucose or CIMT.
Conclusions:
Higher diet quality in childhood at age 5-6 years predicted better health on some cardiovascular outcomes in preadolescence.
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