Diet, Lifestyle and Chronic Disease in Early Life

A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Pediatric Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 5 November 2024 | Viewed by 3896

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Maternal and Child Health, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China
Interests: child growth and development; obesity; epidemiology; environmental factors associated with maternal and child health
Department of Maternal and Child Health, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China
Interests: early life exposures; NDDs; HDP
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Maternal and Child Health, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China
Interests: micronutrients; pregnancy; infant
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are excited to announce our upcoming Special Isue on “Diet, Lifestyle and Chronic Disease in Early Life”. This Special Issue will focus on the associations of nutrition and lifestyle factors with the development of chronic diseases later in early life.

We welcome original research articles, systemic reviews and meta-analyses that explore the following topics:

  1. The effects of early life nutrition on childhood health outcomes related to chronic diseases;
  2. The associations of diet and lifestyle factors on chronic disease risk during childhood and adolescence;
  3. Strategies to improve early life nutrition and lifestyle to prevent chronic diseases.

We encourage submissions from a variety of disciplines, including nutrition, epidemiology, public health, and medicine. Manuscripts will undergo a rigorous peer-review process to ensure their high quality and relevance to the Special Issue theme.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Haijun Wang
Dr. Yuelong Ji
Dr. Hui Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • obesity
  • mental health
  • early life origin
  • early life nutrition
  • chronic disease

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 494 KiB  
Article
Effect of a Multifaceted Intervention on Children’s Body Image and the Mediating Role of Body Image in Changes in Adiposity Indicators
by Jinlang Lyu, Zhongshang Wan, Zheng Liu, Shuang Zhou, Xiangxian Feng, Aiyu Gao, Yi Lin, Fang Zhang and Haijun Wang
Nutrients 2023, 15(18), 3951; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15183951 - 12 Sep 2023
Viewed by 906
Abstract
Besides genetic factors and energy-related behaviors, psycho-cultural factors are also important in obesity etiology. Previous studies have suggested that improving body image might be an effective method for managing body weight. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of a multifaceted intervention [...] Read more.
Besides genetic factors and energy-related behaviors, psycho-cultural factors are also important in obesity etiology. Previous studies have suggested that improving body image might be an effective method for managing body weight. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of a multifaceted intervention on the body image of children and explore whether body image played a mediating role in changes in adiposity indicators. This study was embedded in a cluster randomized controlled trial, involving 1287 children from 24 primary schools in three cities in China (Beijing, Changzhi and Urumqi). The 9-month multifaceted intervention on childhood obesity included five components (three targeted children and two targeted environments), and randomization was performed by an independent person who was blinded to the schools. Two indicators (body size perception and body size expectation) were chosen to characterize body image and were measured by Ma figural stimuli at baseline and the end of the trial. Changes in body image indicators were classified as conducive to weight loss or not. Other anthropometric measures and self-reported behaviors were also collected at both time points. Generalized linear mixed models were used in the analyses. Compared to the controls (n = 648), the proportion of body size perception conducive to weight loss increased in the intervention group (n = 639), with an odds ratio of 2.42 (95%CI: 1.70~3.45, p < 0.001). The proportion of body size expectation conducive to weight loss also increased more in the intervention group than in the controls (OR = 1.74, 95%CI: 1.14~2.66, p = 0.010). In children whose baseline nutritional status was “normal weight with higher BMI” or “overweight/obese”, the improvements in body size perception and body size expectation partly mediated the association between the intervention and changes in BMI, BMI Z score, waist circumference and body fat percentage (p < 0.05). This multifaceted study effectively improved the body image of children, which, in turn, led to beneficial changes in adiposity indicators. For the first time, body size perception and body size expectation have been confirmed to be important factors associated with the beneficial effect of a childhood obesity intervention, suggesting that body image components should be generalized in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diet, Lifestyle and Chronic Disease in Early Life)
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13 pages, 551 KiB  
Article
Maternal Prenatal Factors and Child Adiposity in Associations with Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Term-Born Chinese Children at the Age of 2 Years
by Fengxiu Ouyang, Jonathan C. Wells, Guang-Hui Zhang, Kun Du, Xia Wang, Lixiao Shen, Zhong-Cheng Luo and Jun Zhang
Nutrients 2023, 15(15), 3342; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15153342 - 27 Jul 2023
Viewed by 1049
Abstract
Early growth has long-lasting associations with adult metabolic health. However, the association of adiposity with cardiometabolic risk factors in toddlers remains poorly understood. This study aimed to examine the association of maternal prenatal factors and child adiposity with child cardiometabolic risk factors among [...] Read more.
Early growth has long-lasting associations with adult metabolic health. However, the association of adiposity with cardiometabolic risk factors in toddlers remains poorly understood. This study aimed to examine the association of maternal prenatal factors and child adiposity with child cardiometabolic risk factors among boys and girls aged 2 years. This was a birth cohort study of 549 term-born children in Shanghai, China, with follow-up data at the age of 2-years. Child anthropometric and adiposity measurements included weight, length, and skinfold thickness (triceps, subscapular, and abdominal). Child cardiometabolic risk factors included random morning plasma glucose, serum insulin, lipids, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP). At 2 years, overweight/obesity (weight-for-length z score, ZWFL > 2) was associated with 12.6 (95%CI 7.7, 17.4) mmHg higher SBP, and 7.9 (4.1, 11.8) mmHg higher DBP in boys, with similar results observed in girls. Maternal hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were associated with 3.0 (0.1, 5.8) higher SBP, 3.17 (0.90, 5.44) mmHg higher DBP, 0.24 (0.01,0.47) mmol/L higher plasma glucose, and 0.26 (0.01,0.51) mmol/L higher serum triglycerides after adjustment for child age, sex, and ZWFL. Maternal hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and child overweight/obesity were associated with higher SBP and DBP at the age of 2 years. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diet, Lifestyle and Chronic Disease in Early Life)
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14 pages, 2079 KiB  
Article
Infant Feeding Pattern Clusters Are Associated with Childhood Health Outcomes
by Ju Hee Kim, Eun Lee, Eun Kyo Ha, Gi Chun Lee, Jeewon Shin, Hey-Sung Baek, Sun-Hee Choi, Youn Ho Shin and Man Yong Han
Nutrients 2023, 15(13), 3065; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15133065 - 07 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1217
Abstract
(1) Background: Feeding behavior habits have a pattern with a certain tendency during infancy. We aimed to identify the associations between feeding patterns in infancy and the subsequent 10-year childhood disease burden. (2) Methods: Data from 236,372 infants were obtained from the national [...] Read more.
(1) Background: Feeding behavior habits have a pattern with a certain tendency during infancy. We aimed to identify the associations between feeding patterns in infancy and the subsequent 10-year childhood disease burden. (2) Methods: Data from 236,372 infants were obtained from the national health insurance and screening program records in South Korea. Parent-administered questionnaires during infancy provided details on the feeding type and types/frequency of complementary food for analyzing feeding patterns. The outcomes were all-cause hospitalization and the development of 15 representative childhood diseases until the age of 10 years. Anthropometric measurements obtained at 6 years of age were analyzed. To estimate outcome risks while considering multiple risk factors, we employed a Cox proportional hazard and modified Poisson regression. (3) Results: Three clusters were identified: high prevalence of breastfeeding with regular exposure to a variety of solid foods (n = 116,372, cluster 1), similar prevalence of breastfeeding and formula feeding with less exposure to solid foods (n = 108,189, cluster 2), and similar prevalence of breastfeeding and formula feeding with the least exposure to solid foods in infancy (n = 11,811, cluster 3). Compared with cluster 1, children in clusters 2 and 3 had increased risks of all-cause hospitalization (hazard ratio (HR), (95% confidence interval (CI)), 1.04 (1.03–1.06) and 1.08 (1.05–1.11), respectively). Children in clusters 2 and 3 had an increased risk of upper respiratory infection, pneumonia, and gastroenteritis, as well as neurobehavioral diseases. Overweight/obesity at the age of 6 years was associated with clusters 2 and 3. (4) Conclusions: Feeding patterns in infancy were associated with an increased risk of childhood disease burden. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diet, Lifestyle and Chronic Disease in Early Life)
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10 pages, 1159 KiB  
Brief Report
The Associations between Snack Intake and Cariogenic Oral Microorganism Colonization in Young Children of a Low Socioeconomic Status
by Ahmed Alkadi, Naemah Alkhars, Samantha Manning, Hongzhe Xu, Michael Sohn, Jin Xiao and Ying Meng
Nutrients 2024, 16(8), 1113; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16081113 - 10 Apr 2024
Viewed by 308
Abstract
Cariogenic microorganisms are crucial pathogens contributing to the development of early childhood caries. Snacks provide fermentable carbohydrates, altering oral pH levels and potentially affecting microorganism colonization. However, the relationship between snack intake and cariogenic microorganisms like Candida and Streptococcus mutans in young children [...] Read more.
Cariogenic microorganisms are crucial pathogens contributing to the development of early childhood caries. Snacks provide fermentable carbohydrates, altering oral pH levels and potentially affecting microorganism colonization. However, the relationship between snack intake and cariogenic microorganisms like Candida and Streptococcus mutans in young children is still unclear. This study aimed to assess this association in a prospective underserved birth cohort. Data from children aged 12 to 24 months, including oral microbial assays and snack intake information, were analyzed. Sweet and non-sweet indices based on the cariogenic potential of 15 snacks/drinks were created. Mixed-effects models were used to assess the associations between sweet and non-sweet indices and S. mutans and Candida carriage. Random forest identified predictive factors of microorganism carriage. Higher non-sweet index scores were linked to increased S. mutans carriage in plaques (OR = 1.67, p = 0.01), potentially strengthening with age. Higher sweet index scores at 12 months were associated with increased Candida carriage, reversing at 24 months. Both indices were top predictors of S. mutans and Candida carriage. These findings underscore the associations between snack intake and cariogenic microorganism carriage and highlight the importance of dietary factors in oral health management for underserved young children with limited access to dental care and healthy foods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Diet, Lifestyle and Chronic Disease in Early Life)
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