Risk Factors in the First 1000 Days of Life Associated With Childhood Obesity: A Systematic Review and Risk Factor...

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Public Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Early-life exposures are linked to adverse fetal and infant development, increasing susceptibility to childhood obesity.
• Identifying risk factors is crucial for developing effective prediction and prevention strategies.
• Childhood obesity poses a significant public health challenge with long-term health implications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and evaluate risk factors for childhood obesity.
• To identify risk factors across preconception, pregnancy, and infancy periods.
• To assess the predictive potential of identified risk factors for future obesity.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of longitudinal studies published up to August 17th, 2022.
• Inclusion of studies examining maternal, paternal, or infant risk factors for childhood obesity (ages 2-18).
• Quality assessment of risk factors based on modifiability and predictive power.

Main Results:

• Analysis of 172 observational and 5 intervention studies involving over 1.8 million children.
• Identified 23 consistently associated risk factors for childhood obesity, with prevalence around 11.1%.
• Key risk factors include maternal pre-pregnancy weight, gestational weight gain, maternal smoking, birth weight, size-for-gestational-age, lack of breastfeeding, and infant weight gain.

Conclusions:

• Seven early-life risk factors demonstrate strong associations with childhood obesity.
• These factors are valuable for developing future prediction and prevention strategies.
• Implementation of targeted prevention strategies is recommended from clinical and population perspectives.