Genetic and Environmental Factors Underlying Parallel Changes in Body Mass Index and Alcohol Consumption: A 36-Year Longitudinal Study of Adult Twins

Abstract

Introduction: While the genetic and environmental underpinnings of body weight and alcohol use are fairly well-known, determinants of simultaneous changes in these traits are still poorly known. We sought to quantify the environmental and genetic components underlying parallel changes in weight and alcohol consumption, and to investigate potential covariation between them. Methods: The analysis comprised 4461 adult participants (58% women) from the Finnish Twin Cohort with four measures of alcohol consumption and body mass index (BMI) over a 36-year follow-up. Trajectories of each trait were described by growth factors, defined as intercepts (i.e., baseline) and slopes (i.e., change over follow-up), using Latent Growth Curve Modeling. Growth values were used for male (190 monozygotic pairs, 293 dizygotic pairs) and female (316 monozygotic pairs, 487 dizygotic pairs) same-sex complete twin pairs in multivariate twin modeling. The variances and covariances of growth factors were then decomposed into genetic and environmental components. Results: The baseline heritabilities were similar in men (BMI: h2=79% [95% Confidence Interval: 74,83]; alcohol consumption: h2=49% [32,67]) and women (h2=77% [73,81]; h2=45% [29,61]). Heritabilities of BMI change were similar in men (h2=52% [42,61]) and women (h2=57% [50,63]), but the heritability of change in alcohol consumption was significantly higher (p=0.03) in men (h2=45% [34,54]) than in women (h2=31% [22,38]). Significant additive genetic correlations between BMI at baseline and change in alcohol consumption were observed in both men (rA =-0.17 [-0.29,-0.04]) and women (rA=-0.18 [-0.31,-0.06]). Non-shared environmental factors affecting changes in alcohol consumption and BMI were correlated in men (rE=0.18 [0.06,0.30]). Among women, non-shared environmental factors affecting baseline alcohol consumption and the change in BMI were inversely correlated (rE=-0.11 [-0.20, -0.01]). Conclusions: Based on genetic correlations, genetic variation underlying BMI may affect change in alcohol consumption. Independent of genetic effects, change in BMI correlates with change in alcohol consumption in men, suggesting direct effects between them.

Longitudinal multi-omics study reveals common etiology underlying association between plasma proteome and BMI trajectories in adolescent and young adult twins

“…Heritability estimates of BMI trajectories in FinnTwin12 adolescents (h 2 =63%) were slightly larger than those observed in adult Finnish twins (h 2 = 52-57%) [78], which is consistent with the higher heritability of BMI reported in younger populations [6] and further motivates the study of factors genetically associated with BMI changes during adolescence. Of body mass, fat accounts for a smaller proportion in children and adolescents in general, while gaining fat is more typical in adult populations The previous estimates for the heritability of plasma protein abundance associated with BMI trajectories appear to be rare in the literature.…”

Longitudinal multi-omics study reveals common etiology underlying association between plasma proteome and BMI trajectories in adolescent and young adult twins

“…Heritability estimates of BMI trajectories in FinnTwin12 adolescents (h 2 = 63%) were slightly larger than those observed in adult Finnish twins (h 2 = 52-57%) [85], which is consistent with the higher heritability of BMI reported in younger populations [6] and further motivates the study of factors genetically associated with BMI changes during adolescence. Of body mass, fat accounts for a smaller proportion in children and adolescents in general, while gaining fat is more typical in adult populations.…”

Patterns and predictors of alcohol misuse trajectories from adolescence through early midlife

“…A prior meta-analysis of twin and adoption studies suggests that approximately 50% of the variation in alcohol use disorder (AUD) is explained by genetic factors, and 10% is attributable to environmental factors that are shared by co-twins (e.g., family income, parental divorce, neighborhood characteristics) (Verhulst et al, 2015). Recent longitudinal studies have further demonstrated that changes in frequency and quantity of alcohol use across adolescence and adulthood are influenced by genetic factors (Drouard et al, 2023;Zellers et al, 2022). However, genetic and environmental components of alcohol misuse trajectories from adolescence through early midlife have not been studied.…”