2 results
Maternal adherence to healthy lifestyle and risk of depressive symptoms in the offspring: mediation by offspring lifestyle
- Wei-Chen Wang, Ming Ding, Susanne Strohmaier, Eva Schernhammer, Qi Sun, Jorge E. Chavarro, Henning Tiemeier
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- Journal:
- Psychological Medicine / Volume 53 / Issue 13 / October 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 15 November 2022, pp. 6068-6076
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Background
Adherence to healthy lifestyles can be beneficial for depression among adults, but the intergenerational impact of maternal healthy lifestyles on offspring depressive symptoms is unknown.
MethodsIn total, 10 368 mothers in Nurses' Health Study II and 13 478 offspring in the Growing Up Today Study were paired. Maternal and offspring healthy lifestyles were defined as a composite score including a healthy diet, normal body mass index (BMI), never-smoking, light-to-moderate consumption of alcohol, and regular moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Maternal lifestyles were assessed during their offspring's childhood. Offspring depressive symptoms were repeatedly assessed five times using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale-10 (CESD-10); the offspring were between the ages of 14 and 30 when the first CESD-10 was assessed. Covariates included maternal variables (age at baseline, race/ethnicity, antidepressant use, pregnancy complications, etc.) and offspring age and sex.
ResultsChildren of mothers with the healthiest lifestyle had significantly fewer depressive symptoms (a 0.30 lower CESD-10 score, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.09–0.50) in comparison with children of mothers with the least healthy lifestyle. The association was only found significant in female offspring but not in males. For individual maternal lifestyle factors, a normal BMI, never-smoking, and adherence to regular physical activity were independently associated with fewer depressive symptoms among the offspring. The association between maternal healthy lifestyles and offspring depressive symptoms was mediated by offspring's healthy lifestyles (mediation effect: 53.2%, 95% CI 15.8–87.3).
ConclusionsOur finding indicates the potential mechanism of intergenerational transmission of healthy lifestyles to reduce the risk of depressive symptoms in offspring.
Maternal diet during pregnancy and child weight outcomes
- Leonie Helen Bogl, Susannne Strohmaier, Heather Eliassen, Jennifer Massa, Alison Field, Jorge Chavarro, Ming Ding, Rulla Tamimi, Eva Schernhammer
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- Journal:
- Proceedings of the Nutrition Society / Volume 79 / Issue OCE2 / 2020
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 10 June 2020, E457
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Introduction
Animal studies suggest that maternal diet during pregnancy influences susceptibility to obesity in the next generation. One-carbon nutrients involved in epigenetic processes represent a possible underlying mechanism. Unfortunately, there is limited research in humans to support animal findings, and the few studies available have been limited to birth defects and weight outcomes in early infancy. The aim of this project was to examine the associations between maternal diet (diet quality indicators and one-carbon nutrients) during the period surrounding pregnancy and long-term weight outcomes in the offspring.
MethodsWe examined 2,729 mother-child pairs from the Nurses’ Health Study II and the offspring cohort Growing Up Today Study 2 (GUTS 2). Children, 12–14 years at baseline were 21–23 years at the last follow-up. Overweight was defined for youth less than 18 years of age using sex- and age-specific body mass index (BMI) cut-offs recommended by the International Obesity Task Force and for those 18 years or older as BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2. Dietary information was collected by a validated 131-item food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and questions on supplement use. Maternal dietary patterns were calculated from FFQs using three diet quality scores – the alternate Healthy Eating Index (aHEI), Alternate Mediterranean Diet (aMED) and Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension (DASH). Log-binomial models were used to estimate relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals.
ResultsIn models adjusted for sex, gestational age at delivery and maternal total energy intake, greater maternal adherence to aMED and DASH, but not aHEI, was associated with lower overweight risk in the offspring (RRQ5 vs Q1 = 0.82 [0.70–0.97] for aMED and 0.86 [0.72–1.04] for DASH) (P for trend < 0.05 for both). After additional adjustment for maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and socio-demographic characteristic, none of the diet quality scores was significantly associated with child's birth weight or overweight risk during follow-up. Analysis with one-carbon nutrients are ongoing; we hypothesize that children born to mothers with greater intake of one-carbon nutrients have a lower risk of developing overweight compared to children of mothers with lower intake of these nutrients.
ConclusionsMaternal diet quality indices during pregnancy were not associated with child's birth weight or the risk of developing overweight at ages 12 to 23 years. Further research on maternal dietary intake during pregnancy is warranted because pregnancy offers a window of opportunity to promote behavioral change that may program the health of the next generation.