Exposure to Chinese famine in early life and height across 2 generations: a longitudinal study based on the China Health and Nutrition Survey.

BACKGROUND: Poor nutrition early in life is associated with short stature, which is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality in later life. Less evidence is available about the impact of early-life nutrition on height growth in the subsequent generation. OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the associations of famine exposure in utero and early childhood with height across 2 generations. METHODS: We used longitudinal data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey. We included 5401 participants (F1) born in 1955-1966 (calendar year around the Chinese famine in 1959-1961) and their 3930 biological offspring (F2). We classified F1 participants into subgroups by famine exposure status (unexposed/exposed) and timing (fetal-/childhood-exposed) according to their birth year and grouped F2 by their parents' exposure. Linear regression models were applied to examine the associations of famine exposure with adult height of F1 and F2. Linear mixed effect models with fractional polynomial functions were performed to estimate the difference in height between exposure groups of F2 during childhood. RESULTS: Participants (F1) exposed to famine in utero or in childhood were shorter than those unexposed by 0.41 cm (95% CI: 0.03, 0.80) and 1.12 cm (95% CI: 0.75, 1.48), respectively. Offspring (F2) of exposed fathers were also shorter than those of unexposed parents by 1.07 cm (95% CI: 0.28, 1.86) during childhood (<18 y) and by 1.25 cm (95% CI: 0.07, 2.43) in adulthood (≥18 y), and those with exposed parents had a reduced height during childhood by 1.29 cm (95% CI: 0.68, 1.89) (all P values < 0.05). The associations were more pronounced among child offspring of highly-educated F1, particularly for paternal exposure and among female offspring (all P for interaction < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The findings support the intergenerational associations of famine exposure in early life with height in Chinese populations, indicating the public health significance of improving the nutritional status of mothers and children in the long run.

Parental exposure to famine in early life and child overweight in offspring in Chinese populations.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the transgenerational effect of nutrition deficiency in early life. This study aimed to evaluate the associations of fetal and childhood exposure to famine of parents with their offspring's risk of overweight during childhood. METHODS: This analysis included a total of 3734 participants of the China Health and Nutrition Survey aged 1-17 years whose fathers and/or mothers were born in 1955-1966. These children were classified into subgroups according to parental famine exposure status (unexposed and exposed) and timing (fetal-exposed and childhood-exposed). Random effects models were applied to evaluate the associations of parental famine exposure with body mass index (BMI) and overweight of offspring. Fractional polynomial functions were adopted to describe trajectories of BMI against age. RESULTS: Compared with children of unexposed parents, there was a lower risk of overweight among offspring of childhood-exposed fathers [OR (95%CI): 0.80 (0.61, 1.04)] or exposed parents [0.84 (0.68, 1.04)], particularly among male offspring, but not among those with exposed mothers only [0.98 (0.65, 1.47)]. For BMI, children with exposed mothers only had a slightly higher BMI [ß(95%CI): 0.17 (-0.15, 0.49)], while those with exposed fathers only had no difference [-0.02 (-0.23, 0.19)] or exposed parents had a slightly lower BMI [-0.17 (-0.33, 0.00)] (p < 0.05 for interaction between maternal and paternal exposures). Stratified analysis showed little heterogeneity between male and female offspring, but the association between paternal childhood exposure to famine and lower overweight risk in offspring was more evident in high (vs low) paternal education group (p for interaction< 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The transgenerational associations of early-life exposure to famine with lower risks of child overweight may be via the paternal line and differ by the educational levels of parents. Further studies are warranted to confirm the results and reveal the biological mechanisms underlying.

Transgenerational associations of parental famine exposure in early life with offspring risk of adult obesity in China.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the transgenerational associations between exposure to famine in early life and obesity. METHODS: This study used the longitudinal data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey from 1989 to 2015. A total of 1113 fathers and 1207 mothers (946 mother-father pairs) born in 1955 to 1966 and 1895 adult offspring were included. Offspring were classified into subgroups according to the famine exposure of their parents (unexposed, maternal exposed, paternal exposed, parental exposed) and exposure timing (during fetal development, childhood). RESULTS: Maternal exposure to famine in early life was associated with elevated levels of BMI, waist circumference, overweight, and central obesity of their children, whereas paternal exposure was inversely associated with these measurements. Compared with children of unexposed parents (P0M0), the maternal exposed group (P0M1) had higher mean BMI, by 1.3 kg/m2 (95% CI: 0.3 to 2.4); waist circumference, by 1.5 cm (-1.0 to 3.9); overweight (odds ratio [OR] [95% CI]: 3.1 [1.6 to 6.1]); and central obesity (OR [95% CI]: 1.9 [1.02 to 3.7]). No significant heterogeneity was observed in the associations by sex of offspring. CONCLUSIONS: Fetal and early childhood exposure to famine in parents may be associated with their children's risk of obesity during adulthood. A better understanding of the transgenerational associations is important for developing strategies to reduce obesity risk in future generations.

Physical Activity and Glycemic Control Status in Chinese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial.

This secondary analysis was designed to evaluate the independent effect of physical activity (PA) on hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) level in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). A total of 799 T2DM patients from eight communities of Shanghai, China, were randomized into one control arm and three intervention arms receiving 1-year interventions of health literacy, exercise, or both. PA was measured using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire at baseline, 12 months, and 24 months and quantified as metabolic equivalents (Mets). A multiple level mixed regression model was applied to evaluate the associations between PA and HbA1c level. After adjusting for potential confounders including interaction of PA level with initial PA or HbA1c, a significant improved HbA1c was observed for the patients in the medium versus the lowest tertile groups of overall PA at 12 months (ß: -3.47, 95%CI: -5.33, -1.60) and for those in the highest versus the lowest tertile group at 24 months (ß: -0.50, 95%CI: -1.00, -0.01), resulting in a ß (95%CI) of -3.49 (95%CI: -5.87, -1.11) during the whole two-year period of follow-up. The negative association was also observed when the subjects were classified according to their exercise levels using the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation as a cut-off point. The beneficial effect of higher PA level was only observed among patients having a lower level of baseline HbA1c or PA or both (all p values for interaction <0.05). Our results provide evidence for the beneficial effect of PA and suggest that the exercise intervention should be addressed to the physically inactive patients to improve their PA level to a physiological threshold.