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NEW ORLEANS -- Increasing birth weight nationally has been associated with rising rates of obesity and increasing waist circumference, a researcher said here.
But, across the U.S. pediatric population, the trend toward higher birth weight was also associated with decreasing rates of high systolic blood pressure, high fasting blood glucose, and high HbA1c, reported , of Tulane University in New Orleans, and colleagues.
Action Points
- Note that this study was published as an abstract and presented at a conference. These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
"Despite well-established risk factors for cardiometabolic disease, such as genetics and sedentary lifestyles, the relationship to child metabolic health remains unclear," said Sun at the American Diabetes Association's annual meeting. "Our study aimed to evaluate the association between birth weight and cardiometabolic risks in childhood."
, of Montefiore Medical Center in Bronx, N.Y., who was not involved with the study, told ľֱ that this research is part of the effort to understand the complex interplay between genetics and the environment.
"We are learning a lot about how early and even prenatal events have impacts on health later in life," she said. "As pediatricians, we do tend to assess birth history in our patients, and this highlights the importance of looking at the past as well as the present."
Sun and colleagues examined 16 years of data from the CDC's (NHANES), spanning 1999-2014, representing some 60 million U.S. children younger than 16.
After adjusting for certain confounders, they found that higher birth weight groups (2.5 to ≥4.0 kg) had a decreasing risk of high systolic blood pressure than the lower birth weight group (<2.5 kg), with the highest birth weight group having the lowest risk (≥4.0 kg: odds ratio 0.33, P for trend 0.001).
Similar, statistically significant patterns were seen for birth weight and its link to reduced risk of high fasting glucose levels and reduced risk of high HbA1c.
Researchers also noted a sex-specific trend in the findings, where associations were stronger among boys. In addition, boys had an increased risk of high blood pressure and glycemia in childhood compared with girls.
Disclosures
Sun and colleagues disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
Primary Source
American Diabetes Association
Sun D, et al "Birth weight and cardiometabolic risk in children: the national health and nutrition examination survey (NHANES), 1999-2014" ADA 2016; Abstract 250-OR.