Maternal adiposity is associated with fat mass accretion in female but not male offspring during the first two years of life

Authors: HEARD-LIPSMEYER, MELISSA - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC); DIAZ, EVA - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC); SIMS, CLARK - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC); SOBIK, SARAH - University Arkansas For Medical Sciences (UAMS); RUEBEL, MEGHAN - Michigan State University; THAKALI, KESHARI - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC); KRUOWSKI, REBECCA - Tennessee State University; CLEVES, MARIO - University Of South Florida; BORSHEIM, ELISABET - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC); SHANKAR, KARTIK - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC); ANDRES, ALINE - Arkansas Children'S Nutrition Research Center (ACNC)

Submitted to: Obesity
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/30/2019
Publication Date: 2/6/2020
Citation: Heard-Lipsmeyer, M.E., Diaz, E.C., Sims, C.R., Sobik, S.R., Ruebel, M.L., Thakali, K.M., Kruowski, R.A., Cleves, M., Borsheim, E., Shankar, K., Andres, A. 2020. Maternal adiposity is associated with fat mass accretion in female but not male offspring during the first two years of life. Obesity. https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.22735.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.22735

Interpretive Summary: Maternal obesity during pregnancy is strongly associated with offspring metabolic programming and fat mass, which is a critical window for obesity development later on. However, it is unclear which maternal and postnatal factors determine offspring adiposity. In this study we analyzed 224 mother and infant pairs. Data from mothers was collected from early pregnancy (4-10 weeks of gestation) and every 6 weeks thereafter until 36 weeks of pregnancy. Infant fat mass was assessed at 2 weeks, 1-9, 12, 18 and 24 months of age. Our results demonstrate that maternal serum high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), serum low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), child's sex, birth weight and breastfeeding duration independently predicted offspring fat mass for all children. Maternal body fat during the first trimester, dietary fiber intake during pregnancy, and breastfeeding duration were positively associated with girl's body fat. For boys, birthweight, maternal serum HDL and breastfeeding duration were associated with their body fat. Our results demonstrate that maternal obesity influences fat mass in girls and boys in a distinct manner.

Technical Abstract: This study investigated which antenatal and postnatal factors determine offspring adiposity during the first 2 years of life. Participants were mother and child pairs (N = 224). Offspring percent fat mass (%FM) was obtained using quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance at 11 time points between ages 0.5 and 24 months. Independent variables included race, age, gestational weight gain, first-trimester %FM, delivery mode, gestational measures of resting energy expenditure, respiratory exchange ratio, physical activity, serum cytokines and lipids, and dietary intake for the mothers, as well as sex, birth weight and length, breastfeeding duration, and physical activity at age 2 years for the children. Linear mixed models were used to construct the best-fitted models for the entire cohort and for each sex. Maternal %FM (P = 0.006), high-density lipoprotein (HDL) (P < 0.001), and breastfeeding duration (P = 0.023) were positively associated with female offspring adiposity, whereas maternal dietary fiber intake (P = 0.016) had a negative association. Birth weight (P = 0.004), maternal HDL (P = 0.013), and breastfeeding duration (P = 0.015) were all positively associated with male offspring adiposity. Antenatal and postnatal factors differentially impact male and female offspring adiposity during the first 2 years of life.