Exposure to Chinese famine in early life and the risk of sensory impairment in adulthood

Abstract

BackgroundStudies have shown that malnutrition in early life has a negative effect on midlife cognitive functions. Little is known, however, about the relationship between early-life malnutrition and visual, hearing or dual sensory impairments in adulthood. This study aims to investigate the association between exposure to the 1959–1961 Chinese famine in early life and sensory impairments in adulthood.MethodsA total of 6347 adults born between 1952 and 1964 surveyed in the 2015 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study were included in this study. The presence of sensory impairments was identified by self-reported assessment of visual and hearing functions. The associations between multi-stage early-life famine exposure and sensory functions were estimated using the multiple generalised linear model.ResultsCompared with the unexposed group, respondents exposed to famine in the fetal period and late childhood had a significantly higher risk of hearing impairment (OR 1.54, 95% CI 1.06 to 2.24; OR 1.75, 95% CI 1.23 to 2.50) and dual sensory impairments (OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.00 to 2.11; OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.09 to 2.21), respectively. Furthermore, in severely famine-affected areas, the early, mid and late childhood-exposed groups were more likely to have hearing and dual sensory impairments than the unexposed group. Those associations were not observed in less famine-affected areas. However, no significant association was found between famine exposure and visual impairment in early-life famine-exposed group.ConclusionExposure to Chinese famine in the fetal period and late childhood was linked to hearing and dual sensory impairments in adulthood.

Obesity and risk of hearing loss in the middle-aged and elderly: a national cohort of Chinese adults

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Is Adherence to the Provisional Institute of Medicine Guidelines of Weight Gain Associated With Better Perinatal Outcomes? A Retrospective Cohort Study of Twin Pregnancies in Southwest China

“…As demonstrated by the DOHaD hypothesis, the first 1000 days (the period from conception to age of two years) provides a window of opportunity to influence the lifelong health of a child. Research suggests that starvation and undernutrition lead to poor GWG and this puts a fetus at increased risk of obesity, chronic diseases, mental health disorders, and sensory impairment later in life, 20,21 whereas excessive GWG is associated with macrosomia at birth and childhood and adult obesity. 21 An understanding of the applicability of IOM GWG guidelines for Chinese women is, therefore, important for public health promotion in the country.…”