Latent class trajectories of socioeconomic position over four time points and mortality: the Uppsala Birth Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: The study assessed socioeconomic position (SEP) over four time points and employed a latent class analysis (LCA) to explore the associations between longitudinal SEP trajectories and late-life mortality. METHODS: We analyzed a cohort of 11 336 members born at the Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden during 1915-29 and followed up for mortality during 1980-2008. SEP was measured at birth, age 10, mid-adulthood and late adulthood. LCA was used to identify SEP trajectories, which were linked to all-cause and cause-specific mortality through Cox proportional hazard regression models. RESULTS: The age and birth cohort adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of all-cause mortality among the upwardly mobile from middle vs. stable low SEP was 28% lower in men [HR: 0.72; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.65, 0.81] and 30% lower in women (HR: 0.70; 95% CI: 0.62, 0.78). The corresponding HR of cardiovascular mortality was 30% lower in men (HR: 0.70; 95% CI: 0.60, 0.82) and 31% lower in women (HR: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.58, 0.83). Upward mobility was also associated with decreased HR of mortality from respiratory diseases and injuries among men and from cancer, respiratory diseases, injuries and mental disorders among women. The upwardly mobile were similar to the stable high group in terms of their HRs of mortality from all-causes and cardiovascular, cancer and mental diseases. CONCLUSIONS: Upward mobility appeared to be protective of mortality from a wide range of causes. Interventions aiming to prevent deaths can benefit from creating optimal conditions earlier in the life course, letting disadvantaged children maximize their socioeconomic and health potentials.

Psychiatric comorbidity among women with endometriosis: nationwide cohort study in Sweden.

BACKGROUND: Endometriosis is a common gynecologic condition affecting women of reproductive age. It has been linked with greater rates of depression and anxiety in small, cross-sectional, and clinical studies. Other studies have reported that women with endometriosis have increased risk of bipolar disorder. These reports suggest that psychiatric disorders might be more common among women with endometriosis, contributing to increased burden of mental ill-health in this population of women. However, this hypothesis has not been adequately studied. OBJECTIVES: In this population-based study, we investigated the overall psychiatric comorbidity among women with endometriosis, and the role of familial liability. STUDY DESIGN: Several Swedish national registers were linked and used to follow all women born in Sweden in 1973-1990 for diagnosed psychiatric disorders and endometriosis from age 14 years until year 2016. Sibling comparison analyses were performed in a subsample of 173,650 families. RESULTS: After adjustment for birth characteristics and education, women with endometriosis had an increased risk of being later diagnosed with depressive-, anxiety and stress-related disorders, alcohol/drug dependence, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder compared with the general population and with their sisters without endometriosis. The adjusted hazard ratios ranged from 1.56 (95% confidence interval, 1.29-1.88) for depressive disorders to 1.98 (95% confidence interval, 1.34-2.93) for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in the sibling analysis. Also, women with previous affective psychotic disorders, depressive-, anxiety and stress-related disorders, eating disorders, personality disorders, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder were more likely to be later diagnosed with endometriosis. The adjusted hazard ratios ranged from 1.51 (95% confidence interval, 1.30-1.76) for depressive disorders to 1.93 (95% confidence interval, 1.47-2.52) for personality disorders. CONCLUSION: These findings reveal a high degree of comorbidity between endometriosis and many psychiatric disorders that was not entirely explained by shared familial confounding. Clinical practice may consider psychosocial support to women with endometriosis and treating them from a multidisciplinary perspective.

2009 IOM guidelines for gestational weight gain: how well do they predict outcomes across ethnic groups?

Objective: To determine whether the Institute Of Medicine's (IOM) 2009 guidelines for weight-gain during pregnancy are predictive of maternal and infant outcomes in ethnic minority populations.Methods: We designed a population-based study using administrative data on 181,948 women who delivered live singleton births in Washington State between 2006-2008. We examined risks of gestational hypertension, preeclampsia/eclampsia, cesarean delivery, and extended hospital stay in White, Black, Native-American, East-Asian, Hispanic, South-Asian and Hawaiian/Pacific islander women according to whether they gained more or less weight during pregnancy than recommended by IOM guidelines. We also examined risks of neonatal outcomes including Apgar score <7 at 5 min, admission to NICU, requirement for ventilation, and a diagnosis of small or large for gestational age at birth.Results: Gaining too much weight was associated with increased odds for gestational hypertension (adjusted OR (aOR) ranged between 1.53-2.22), preeclampsia/eclampsia (aOR 1.44-1.81), cesarean delivery (aOR 1.07-1.38) and extended hospital stay (aOR 1.06-1.28) in all ethnic groups. Gaining too little weight was associated with decreased odds for gestational hypertension and delivery by cesarean section in Whites, Blacks and Hispanics. Gaining less weight or more weight than recommended was associated with increased odds for small for gestational age and large for gestational age infants respectively, in all ethnic groups.Conclusions: Adherence to the 2009 IOM guidelines for weight gain during pregnancy reduces risk for various adverse maternal outcomes in all ethnic groups studied. However, the guidelines were less predictive of infant outcomes with the exception of small and large for gestational age.Abbreviations: GWG: Gestational weight gain; IOM/NRC; Institute of Medicine and National Research Council; NICU: Neonatal intensive care need for ventilation; SGA: Small for gestational age; LGA: Large for gestational age; BERD: Birth Events Records Database; CHARS: Comprehensive Hospital Discharge Abstract Reporting System; ICD: International Classification of Disease; LMP: Last menstrual period; OR: Odds ratio.

Pain rates in general population for the period 1991-2015 and 10-years prediction: results from a multi-continent age-period-cohort analysis.

BACKGROUND: Pain is a common symptom, often associated with neurological and musculoskeletal conditions, and experienced especially by females and by older people. The aims of this study are to evaluate the temporal variations of pain rates among general populations for the period 1991-2015 and to project 10-year pain rates. METHODS: We used the harmonized dataset of ATHLOS project, which included 660,028 valid observations in the period 1990-2015 and we applied Bayesian age-period-cohort modeling to perform projections up to 2025. The harmonized Pain variable covers the content "self-reported pain experienced at the time of the interview", with a dichotomous (yes or no) modality. RESULTS: Pain rates were higher among females, older subjects, in recent periods, and among observations referred to cohorts of subjects born between the 20s and the 60s. The 10-year projections indicate a noteworthy increase in pain rates in both genders and particularly among subjects aged 66 or over, for whom a 10-20% increase in pain rate is foreseen; among females only, a 10-15% increase in pain rates is foreseen for those aged 36-50. CONCLUSIONS: Projected increase in pain rates will require specific interventions by health and welfare systems, as pain is responsible for limited quality of subjective well-being, reduced employment rates and hampered work performance. Worksite and lifestyle interventions will therefore be needed to limit the impact of projected higher pain rates.

Alcohol and type 2 diabetes: The role of socioeconomic, lifestyle and psychosocial factors.

AIMS: We investigate (a) alcohol consumption in association with type 2 diabetes, taking heavy episodic drinking (HED), socioeconomic, health and lifestyle, and psychosocial factors into account, and (b) whether a seemingly protective effect of moderate alcohol consumption on type 2 diabetes persists when stratified by occupational position. METHODS: This population-based longitudinal cohort study comprises 16,223 Swedes aged 18-84 years who answered questionnaires about lifestyle, including alcohol consumption in 2002, and who were followed-up for self-reported or register-based diabetes in 2003-2011. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated in a multivariable-adjusted logistic regression model for all participants and stratified by high and low occupational position. We adjusted for HED, socioeconomic (occupational position, cohabiting status and unemployment), health and lifestyle (body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, smoking, physical inactivity, poor general health, anxiety/depression and psychosocial (low job control and poor social support) characteristics one by one, and the sets of these factors. RESULTS: Moderate consumption was inversely associated with type 2 diabetes after controlling for health and lifestyle (OR=0.47; 95% CI: 0.29-0.79) and psychosocial factors (OR=0.40; 95% CI: 0.22-0.79) when compared to non-drinkers. When adjusting for socioeconomic factors, there was still an inverse but non-significant association (OR=0.59; 95% CI: 0.35-1.00). In those with high occupational position, there was no significant association between moderate consumption and type 2 diabetes after adjusting for socioeconomic (OR=0.67; 95% CI: 0.3-1.52), health and lifestyle (OR=0.70; 95% CI: 0.32-1.5), and psychosocial factors (OR=0.75; 95% CI: 0.23-2.46). On the contrary, in those with low occupational position, ORs decreased from 0.55 (95% CI: 0.28-1.1) to 0.35 (95% CI: 0.15-0.82) when adjusting for psychosocial factors, a decrease that was solely due to low job control. HED did not influence any of these associations. CONCLUSIONS: Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, after adjusting for HED, health and lifestyle, and psychosocial characteristics. The association was inverse but non-significant after adjusting for socioeconomic factors. When stratified by occupational position, there was an inverse association only in those with low occupational position and after adjusting for low job control.

Academic performance, externalizing disorders and depression: 26,000 adolescents followed into adulthood.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of major depression among adults has been shown to be socially differentiated, and there are reasons to seek explanations for this before adulthood. In this cohort study, we examined whether academic performance in adolescence predicts depression in adulthood, and the extent to which externalizing disorders explain this association. METHODS: We followed 26,766 Swedish women and men born 1967-1982 from the last year of compulsory school, at age about 16, up to 48 years of age. We investigated the association between grade point average (GPA, standardized by gender) and first diagnosis of depression in national registers of in- or out-patient psychiatric care. We used Cox proportional hazards models, adjusting for lifetime externalizing diagnoses and potential confounders including childhood socioeconomic position and IQ. RESULTS: During follow-up, 7.0% of the women and 4.4% of the men were diagnosed with depression. A GPA in the lowest quartile, compared with the highest, was associated with an increased risk in both women (hazard ratio 95% confidence interval 1.7, 1.3-2.1) and men (2.9, 2.2-3.9) in models controlling for potential confounders. Additional control for externalizing disorders attenuated the associations, particularly in women. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that poor academic performance is associated with depression in young adulthood and that the association is partly explained by externalizing disorders. Our results indicate the importance of early detection and management of externalizing disorders among children and adolescents.

Maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and offspring body composition in young adulthood: the modifying role of offspring sex and birth order.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate if the association between maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and offspring's body composition in late adolescence and young adulthood varies by offspring birth order and sex. DESIGN: Family cohort study, with data from registers, questionnaires and physical examinations. The main outcome under study was offspring body composition (percentage fat mass (%FM), percentage lean mass (%LM)) measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. SETTING: Uppsala, Sweden. SUBJECTS: Two hundred and twenty-six siblings (first-born v. second-born; average age 19 and 21 years) and their mothers. RESULTS: In multivariable linear regression models, maternal pre-pregnancy BMI was positively associated with daughter's %FM, with stronger estimates for first-born (ß=0·97, 95 % CI 0·14, 1·80) v. second-born daughters (ß=0·64, 95 % CI 0·08, 1·20). Mother's BMI before her first pregnancy was associated with her second-born daughter's body composition (ß=1·05, 95 % CI 0·31, 1·79 (%FM)) Similar results albeit in the opposite direction were observed for %LM. No significant associations were found between pre-pregnancy BMI and %FM (ß=0·59, 95 % CI-0·27, 1·44 first-born; ß=-0·13, 95 % CI-0·77, 0·52 second-born) or %LM (ß=-0·54, 95 % CI-1·37, 0·28 first-born; ß=0·11, 95 % CI-0·52, 0·74 second-born) for sons. CONCLUSIONS: A higher pre-pregnancy BMI was associated with higher offspring %FM and lower offspring %LM in late adolescence and young adulthood, with stronger associations for first-born daughters. Preventing obesity at the start of women's reproductive life might reduce the risk of obesity in her offspring, particularly for daughters.

Early life characteristics, social mobility during childhood and risk of stroke in later life: findings from a Swedish cohort.

AIMS: To investigate if early life characteristics and social mobility during childhood are associated with incident thrombotic stroke (TS), haemorrhagic stroke (HS) and other stroke (OS). METHODS: Our study population consists of all live births at Uppsala University Hospital in 1915-1929 (Uppsala Birth Cohort; n = 14,192), of whom 5532 males and 5061 females were singleton births and lived in Sweden in 1964. We followed them from 1 January 1964 until first diagnosis of stroke (in the National Patient Register or Causes of Death Register), emigration, death, or until 31 December 2008. Data were analysed using Cox regression, stratifying by gender. RESULTS: Gestational age was negatively associated with TS and OS in women only. Women had increased risk of TS if they were born early preterm (<35 weeks) (HR 1.54 (95% CI 1.02-2.31)) or preterm (35-36 weeks) (HR 1.37 (95% CI 1.03-1.83)) compared to women born at term. By contrast, only women who were early preterm (HR 1.98 (95% CI 1.27-3.10) had an increased risk of OS. Men who were born post-term (⩾42 weeks) had increased risk of HS (HR 1.45 (95% CI 1.04-2.01)) compared with men born at term, with no association for women. TS was associated with social mobility during childhood in women: women whose families were upwardly or downwardly mobile had increased risk of TS compared to women who were always advantaged during childhood. CONCLUSIONS: Gestational age and social mobility during childhood were associated with increased risk of stroke later in life, particularly among women, but there was some heterogeneity between stroke subtypes.

Childhood family structure and women's adult overweight risk: A longitudinal study.

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate whether women's adult overweight and obesity risk was associated with their childhood family structure, measured as their mothers' marital status history, during the women's first 18 years of life. METHODS: Using linked register data, we analyzed 30,584 primiparous women born in Sweden in 1975 who were between 19-35 years of age when their height and pre-pregnancy weight was recorded. The outcomes were women's overweight/obesity (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) and the predictor was mothers' marital status history, which was summarized using sequence analysis. We carried out nested logistic regression models adjusting for women's age and maternal sociodemographic characteristics. RESULTS: Mothers' marital status history was summarized into six clusters: stable marriage, stable cohabitation, married then divorcing, cohabiting then separating, varied transitions, and not with father. In fully adjusted models and compared with women whose mothers belonged to the stable marriage cluster: (1) women whose mothers belonged to the other marital status clusters had higher odds of overweight/obesity (odds ratio (OR) ranging 1.15-1.19; p < 0.05); and (2) women whose mothers belonged to the stable cohabitation (OR = 1.31; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.14-1.52), cohabiting then separating (OR = 1.23; 95% CI = 1.01-1.49), varied transitions (OR = 1.24; 95% CI = 1.11-1.39), and not with father (OR = 1.24; 95% CI = 1.00-1.54) clusters had higher odds of obesity. CONCLUSIONS: Women whose mothers were not in stable marriage relationships had higher odds of being overweight or obese in adulthood. The finding that even women raised in the context of stable cohabitation had higher odds of being overweight or obese is intriguing as these relationships are socially accepted in Sweden.

Social patterning of overeating, binge eating, compensatory behaviours and symptoms of bulimia nervosa in young adult women: results from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health.

OBJECTIVE: To study social patterning of overeating and symptoms of disordered eating in a general population. DESIGN: A representative, population-based cohort study. SETTING: The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH), Survey 1 in 1996 and Survey 2 in 2000. SUBJECTS: Women (n 12 599) aged 18-23 years completed a questionnaire survey at baseline, of whom 6866 could be studied prospectively. RESULTS: Seventeen per cent of women reported episodes of overeating, 16 % reported binge eating and 10 % reported compensatory behaviours. Almost 4 % of women reported symptoms consistent with bulimia nervosa. Low education, not living with family, perceived financial difficulty (OR=1·8 and 1·3 for women with severe and some financial difficulty, respectively, compared with none) and European language other than English spoken at home (OR=1·5 for European compared with Australian/English) were associated with higher prevalence of binge eating. Furthermore, longitudinal analyses indicated increased risk of persistent binge eating among women with a history of being overweight in childhood, those residing in metropolitan Australia, women with higher BMI, smokers and binge drinkers. CONCLUSIONS: Overeating, binge eating and symptoms of bulimia nervosa are common among young Australian women and cluster with binge drinking. Perceived financial stress appears to increase the risk of binge eating and bulimia nervosa. It is unclear whether women of European origin and those with a history of childhood overweight carry higher risk of binge eating because of genetic or cultural reasons.

High education and increased parity are associated with breast-feeding initiation and duration among Australian women.

OBJECTIVE: Breast-feeding is associated with positive maternal and infant health and development outcomes. To assist identifying women less likely to meet infant nutritional guidelines, we investigated the role of socio-economic position and parity on initiation of and sustaining breast-feeding for at least 6 months. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Australia. SUBJECTS: Parous women from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (born 1973-78), with self-reported reproductive and breast-feeding history (N 4777). RESULTS: While 89 % of women (83 % of infants) had ever breast-fed, only 60 % of infants were breast-fed for at least 6 months. Multiparous women were more likely to breast-feed their first child (~90 % v. ~71 % of primiparous women), and women who breast-fed their first child were more likely to breast-feed subsequent children. Women with a low education (adjusted OR (95 % CI): 2·09 (1·67, 2·62)) or a very low-educated parent (1·47 (1·16, 1·88)) had increased odds of not initiating breast-feeding with their first or subsequent children. While fewer women initiated breast-feeding with their youngest child, this was most pronounced among high-educated women. While ~60 % of women breast-fed their first, second and third child for at least 6 months, low-educated women (first child, adjusted OR (95 % CI): 2·19 (1·79, 2·68)) and women with a very low (1·82 (1·49, 2·22)) or low-educated parent (1·69 (1·33, 2·14)) had increased odds of not breast-feeding for at least 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: A greater understanding of barriers to initiating and sustaining breast-feeding, some of which are socio-economic-specific, may assist in reducing inequalities in infant breast-feeding.

A Life-Course Study of Cognitive Reserve in Dementia--From Childhood to Old Age.

OBJECTIVE: To test a life-course model of cognitive reserve in dementia and examine if school grades around age 10 years, formal educational attainment, and lifetime occupational complexity affect the risk of dementia in old age. METHODS: 7,574 men and women from the Uppsala Birth Cohort Multigenerational Study were followed for 21 years. Information on school performance, formal education, and occupational attainment was collected prospectively from elementary school archives and population censuses. Dementia diagnosis was extracted from the two Swedish registers. Discrete-time Cox proportional hazard models were estimated. RESULTS: Dementia was diagnosed in 950 individuals (12.5%). Dementia risk was lower among individuals with higher childhood school grades (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.79; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.68 to 0.93) and was lower among individuals in data-complex occupations (HR: 0.77; 95% CI: 0.64 to 0.92). Professional/university education predicted lower risk of dementia in minimally adjusted models (HR: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.60 to 0.91), although the effect faded with adjustment for occupational complexity. Lowest risk was found in the group with both higher childhood school performance and high occupational complexity with data (HR: 0.61; 95% CI: 0.50 to 0.75). Importantly, high occupational complexity could not compensate for the effect of low childhood grades. In contrast, dementia risk was reduced in those with higher school grades, irrespective of occupational complexity. CONCLUSION: Higher childhood school performance is protective of dementia risk, particularly when preserved through complex work environments in adulthood, although it will remain protective even in the absence of later-life educational or occupational stimulation.

Preterm and postterm birth in immigrant- and Swedish-born parents: a population register-based study.

Ethnic minorities/immigrant groups tend to have increased risk for preterm birth. Less is known about this risk in diverse immigrant groups, couples of mixed ethnic-origin and in relation to duration of residence. Data from the Swedish Medical Birth Register on 1,028,303 mothers who gave birth to 1,766,026 singleton live born infants (1982-2002), was linked to the Education and Total Population Registers. Immigrant parents were identified by country of birth. Risk of early preterm, late preterm and postterm birth was analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. Polish, Yugoslavian, Iranian, South Asian, East Asian and Sub-Saharan African parents, Swedish mothers who had children with non-Swedish fathers, and parents from two different immigrant groups had higher risk of early preterm birth [adjusted relative risk (RR) (95% CI) 1.76 (1.24-2.50), 1.57 (1.31-1.87), 1.67 (1.30-2.14), 1.52 (1.07-2.16), 1.51 (1.08-2.10), 2.03 (1.32-3.12), 1.56 (1.45-1.67), and 1.55 (1.35-1.77) respectively] compared to Swedish-born parents. South Asian, Sub-Saharan African, and East Asian immigrants had a higher risk of late preterm birth compared to Swedish-born parents. North African and Middle Eastern, Somali, and Ethiopian/Eritrean groups had increased risk of postterm birth [adjusted RR 1.31 (1.16-1.47), 2.57 (2.31-2.86), 1.85 (1.67-2.04) respectively]. Adjustment for covariates did not substantially change associations. Immigrant mothers resident <3 years had higher risk for early preterm and postterm birth compared to residents >10 years [adjusted RR 1.46 (1.24-1.71) and 1.16 (1.11-1.23) respectively]. In addition to higher risk of preterm birth in select immigrant groups, some immigrant groups are also at higher risk of postterm birth. Shorter duration of residence is associated with higher risk of non-term deliveries.

Parental mental illness and eating disorders in offspring.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate which parental mental illnesses are associated with eating disorders in their offspring. METHOD: We used data from a record-linkage cohort study of 158,679 children aged 12-24 years at the end of follow-up, resident in Stockholm County from 2001 to 2007, to investigate whether different parental mental illnesses are risk factors for eating disorders in their offspring. The outcome measure was diagnosis of any eating disorder, either from an ICD or DSM-IV code, or inferred from an appointment at a specialist eating disorder clinic. RESULTS: Mental illness in parents is a risk factor for eating disorders in female offspring (Adjusted Hazard Ratio (AHR) 1.57 (95% CI 1.42, 1.92), p < 0.0001). Risk of eating disorders is increased if there is a parental diagnosis of bipolar affective disorder (AHR 2.28 (95% CI 1.39, 3.72), p = 0.004), personality disorder (AHR 1.57 (95% CI 1.01, 2.44), p = 0.043) or anxiety/depression (AHR 1.57 (95% CI 1.32, 1.86), p < 0.0001). There is a lack of statistical evidence for an association with parental schizophrenia (AHR 1.41 (95% CI 0.96, 2.07), p = 0.08), and somatoform disorder (AHR 1.25 (95% CI 0.74, 2.13), p = 0.40). There is no support for a relationship between parental substance misuse and eating disorders in children (AHR 1.08 (95% CI 0.82, 1.43), p = 0.57). DISCUSSION: Parental mental illness, specifically parental anxiety, depression, bipolar affective disorder, and personality disorders, are risk factors for eating disorders in their offspring.

Regional inequalities in pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity in Sweden, 1992, 2000, and 2010.

AIMS: To investigate regional differences and time trends in women's overweight and obesity in Sweden. METHODS: Using data from the Swedish Medical Birth Register (women aged ⩾18 years, first pregnancy only) and the Total Population Register accessed through the Umeå SIMSAM Lab, age-standardized prevalence of pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity (BMI ⩾ 25 kg/m(2)) and obesity (BMI ⩾ 30 kg/m(2)) were estimated by county for the years 1992, 2000, and 2010. Maps were created using ArcMap v10.2.2 to display regional variations over time and logistic regression analyses were used to assess if the observed trends were significant. RESULTS: The prevalence of pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity and obesity increased significantly in all Swedish counties between 1992, and 2010. In 2010, Södermanland and Gotland exhibited the highest age-standardized overweight/obesity (39.7%) and obesity (15.1%) prevalence, respectively. The sharpest increases between 1992 and 2010 were observed in Västerbotten for overweight/obesity (75% increase) and in Gotland for obesity (233% increase). Across the years, Stockholm had the lowest prevalence of overweight/obesity (26.3% in 2010) and obesity (7.3% in 2010) and one of the least steep increases in prevalence of both between 1992 and 2010. CONCLUSIONS: Substantial regional differences in pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity prevalence are apparent in Sweden. Further research should elucidate the mechanisms causing these differences.

Associations between birth characteristics and eating disorders across the life course: findings from 2 million males and females born in Sweden, 1975-1998.

Birth characteristics predict a range of major physical and mental disorders, but findings regarding eating disorders are inconsistent and inconclusive. This total-population Swedish cohort study identified 2,015,862 individuals born in 1975-1998 and followed them for anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and eating disorder not otherwise specified until the end of 2010. We examined associations with multiple family and birth characteristics and conducted within-family analyses to test for maternal-level confounding. In total, 1,019 males and 15,395 females received an eating disorder diagnosis. Anorexia nervosa was independently predicted by multiple birth (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.33, 95% confidence interval: 1.15, 1.53) for twins or triplets vs. singletons) and lower gestational age (adjusted hazard ratio = 0.96, 95% confidence interval: 0.95, 0.98) per extra week of gestation, with a clear dose-response pattern. Within-family analyses provided no evidence of residual maternal-level confounding. Higher birth weight for gestational age showed a strong, positive dose-response association with bulimia nervosa (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.15, 95% confidence interval: 1.09, 1.22, per each standard-deviation increase), again with no evidence of residual maternal-level confounding. We conclude that some perinatal characteristics may play causal, disease-specific roles in the development of eating disorders, including via perinatal variation within the normal range. Further research into the underlying mechanisms is warranted. Finally, several large population-based studies of anorexia nervosa have been conducted in twins; it is possible that these studies considerably overestimate prevalence.

Educational mobility and weight gain over 13 years in a longitudinal study of young women.

BACKGROUND: Limited evidence exists about the role of education and own educational mobility on body weight trajectory. A better understanding of how education influences long term weight gain can help us to design more effective health policies. METHODS: Using random effects models, the association between i) highest education (n = 10 018) and ii) educational mobility over a 9 year period (n = 9 907) and weight gain was analysed using five waves of data (over 13 years) from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health 1973-78 cohort (from 18-23 years to 31-36 years). RESULTS: Highest educational attainment was inversely associated with weight at baseline and weight gain over 13 years. Compared to high educated women, those with a low (12 years or less) or intermediate (trade/certificate/diploma) education, respectively, weighed an additional 2.6 kg (95% CI:1.9 to 3.1) and 2.5 kg (95% CI:1.9 to 3.3) at baseline and gained an additional 3.9 kg (95% CI:2.6 to 5.2) and 3.1 kg (95% CI:2.6 to 3.9) over 13 years. Compared to women who remained with a low education, women with the greatest educational mobility had similar baseline weight to the women who already had a high education at baseline (2.7 kg lighter (95% CI:-3.7 to -1.8) and 2.7 kg lighter (95% CI:-3.4 to -1.9), respectively) and similarly favourable weight gain (gaining 3.1 kg less (95% CI:-4.0 to -2.21) and 4.2 kg less (95% CI:-4.8 to -3.4) over the 13 years, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: While educational attainment by mid-thirties was positively associated with better weight management, women's weight was already different in young adult age, before their highest education was achieved. These findings highlight a potential role of early life factors and personality traits which may influence both education and weight outcomes.

[Epidemiology of dyspepsia]. / Epidemiologie dyspepsie.

Epidemiology of uninvestigated dyspepsia was studied in the Czech Republic for the first time in 2001. The aim of our current multi-centre prospective study was to evaluate dyspepsia using the same methods in a representative sample of general unselected population from the same geographical areas 10 years later. A total of 22 centres entered the study. A total of 1,836 subjects (aged 5-98 years) were enrolled. The overall prevalence of dyspepsia was 12 %; namely 3.5 % in subjects aged 5-24 years, 18 % among 25-64-year-old persons and 15 % in subjects 65 years. Despite the substantial decrease of Helicobacter pylori infection in the Czech Republic over the past 10 years, the prevalence and basic socio-demographic determinants of uninvestigated dyspepsia did not change significantly.

Birth size and survival in breast cancer patients from the Uppsala Birth Cohort Study.

PURPOSE: Previous studies suggest that larger birth size is associated with a higher breast cancer incidence, but studies on birth measures and mortality in breast cancer cases are scarce. This study investigates survival of women after breast cancer diagnosis (n = 437) in the Uppsala Birth Cohort born in 1915-1929. METHODS: Cox regression was used to analyze mortality from any cause after a breast cancer diagnosis. Birth measures including gestational age (GA), birth weight (BW), BW for GA, birth length, and ponderal index (PI) were converted to standard deviation (SD) scores, and all analyses were adjusted for age and calendar time at diagnosis. Analyses were performed with and without adjustment for other birth measures, reproductive history, and adult socioeconomic position. RESULTS: In fully adjusted analyses, one SD increase in GA was associated with 17% [95% confidence interval (CI) 6-26%] lower mortality and one SD increase in BW was associated with 29% (7-56%) higher mortality. PI showed a weaker trend in the same direction: hazard ratio = 1.16 (95% CI 1.03-1.30). CONCLUSIONS: Our results bring in new evidence that both high GA and low BW predict a better survival in breast cancer cases. Further studies need to investigate mediation of these associations.

Socioeconomic and early-life factors and risk of being overweight or obese in children of Swedish- and foreign-born parents.

BACKGROUND: Ethnic minorities/immigrants have differential health as compared with natives. The epidemic in child overweight/obesity (OW/OB) in Sweden is leveling off, but lower socioeconomic groups and immigrants/ethnic minorities may not have benefited equally from this trend. We investigated whether nonethnic Swedish children are at increased risk for being OW/OB and whether these associations are mediated by parental socioeconomic position (SEP) and/or early-life factors such as birth weight, maternal smoking, BMI, and breastfeeding. METHODS: Data on 10,628 singleton children (51% boys, mean age: 4.8 y, born during the period 2000-2004) residing in Uppsala were analyzed. OW/OB was computed using the International Obesity Task Force's sex- and age-specific cutoffs. The mother's nativity was used as proxy for ethnicity. Logistic regression was used to analyze ethnicity-OW/OB associations. RESULTS: Children of North African, Iranian, South American, and Turkish ethnicity had increased odds for being overweight/obese as compared with children of Swedish ethnicity (adjusted odds ratio (OR): 2.60 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.57-4.27), 1.67 (1.03-2.72), 3.00 (1.86-4.80), and 2.90 (1.73-4.88), respectively). Finnish children had decreased odds for being overweight/obese (adjusted OR: 0.53 (0.32-0.90)). CONCLUSION: Ethnic differences in a child's risk for OW/OB exist in Sweden that cannot be explained by SEP or maternal or birth factors. As OW/OB often tracks into adulthood, more effective public health policies that intervene at an early age are needed.