Infant cholesterol and glycated haemoglobin concentrations vary widely-Associations with breastfeeding, infant diet and maternal biomarkers.

AIM: Elevated total cholesterol (TC) and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) are risk factors for cardiovascular disease; however, little is known about their determinants in infants. We aimed to describe TC and HbA1c concentrations in infants aged 8-14 months and explore the relation between infant TC, HbA1c, breastfeeding, infant diet, and maternal TC and HbA1c. METHODS: In this cross-sectional pilot study, mothers of infants aged 6 and 12 months were invited to complete a food frequency questionnaire and to take home-based dried blood spot samples from themselves and their infants. RESULTS: Among the 143 included infants, the mean (SD, range) concentration was 4.1 (0.8, 2.3-6.6) mmol/L for TC and 4.9 (0.4, 3.7-6.0)% for HbA1c. There was no significant difference between age groups and sexes. There was a positive relation between TC concentrations of all infants and mothers (B = 0.30 unadjusted, B = 0.32 adjusted, P < .001 for both) and a negative relation between infant TC and intake of unsaturated fatty acids in the oldest age group (B = -0.09, P = .03 unadjusted, B = -0.08, P = .06 adjusted). Infant HbA1c was not significantly related to diet or maternal HbA1c. CONCLUSION: TC and HbA1c concentrations varied widely among infants aged 8-14 months. Infant TC was associated with macronutrient intake and maternal TC.