Disease Patterns Across the Life Course by Childhood BMI Group

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Endocrinology
• Public Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Childhood body mass index (BMI) is a critical factor influencing long-term health outcomes.
• Previous research primarily focused on the association between childhood BMI and single disease risks.
• Understanding sex-specific disease patterns across the lifespan based on childhood BMI is crucial for preventative strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate sex-specific patterns of disease diagnoses from ages 15 to 60 years based on childhood BMI.
• To determine if childhood BMI influences the cumulative incidence of various diseases throughout adulthood.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from 112,952 children (born 1962-1996) from the Copenhagen School Health Records Register.
• Classified childhood BMI at age 7 into underweight, normal weight, overweight, or obesity categories.
• Calculated sex-specific cumulative incidences for the 50 most frequent hospital-based diseases up to age 60.

Main Results:

• Individuals with childhood obesity exhibited the highest mean number of hospital diagnoses by age 60 (18.2 in females, 15.1 in males).
• Adult overweight/obesity was the most frequent diagnosis before age 60 in childhood obesity groups (36.4% females, 11.8% males).
• Minor variations in other disease diagnoses were observed across different childhood BMI categories.

Conclusions:

• Childhood obesity is associated with a significantly higher burden of hospital-based diagnoses by age 60.
• Disease patterns throughout life course show limited variation by childhood BMI, with the exception of adult overweight and obesity.
• These findings highlight the importance of addressing childhood obesity to mitigate long-term health consequences.