Prenatal exposure to the Chinese famine and the risk of metabolic syndrome in adulthood across consecutive generations

Yan, Shiwei; Hou, Wanying; Wu, Huanyu; Jiang, Wenbo; Li, Yinling; Zhang, Yuan; Li, Hongyin; Yang, Sen; Sun, Changhao; Han, Tianshu; Liu, Ying

doi:10.1038/s41430-020-0561-3

Cited by 13 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Studies based on Survey on Prevalence in East China for Metabolic Diseases and Risk Factors (SPECT‐China), 29 the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), 30 and the 2002 China National Nutrition and Health Survey (CNNHS) 12 have reported that famine exposure in early life increased the risk of MetS in later life. Four other Chinese famine studies found similar results 13,14,31,32 . A meta‐analysis including 81 504 subjects indicated that, compared to the nonexposed group, individuals who experienced a famine during the fetal and childhood stages had an increased risk of MetS as adults 33 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

“…Four other Chinese famine studies found similar results. 13 , 14 , 31 , 32 A meta‐analysis including 81 504 subjects indicated that, compared to the nonexposed group, individuals who experienced a famine during the fetal and childhood stages had an increased risk of MetS as adults. 33 Our recent study further confirmed the strong relationship between early life famine exposure and the risk of developing MetS, as well as the gender difference, with a positive correlation in women but not in men.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Association between early life famine exposure and risk of metabolic syndrome in later life

Zhang

et al. 2022

Journal of Diabetes

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Background Previous studies reported that famine exposure had an effect on metabolic syndrome (MetS). However, there is an inadequacy of study regarding the association between famine exposure, adulthood general obesity, and the risk of MetS. Methods A total of 8883 subjects aged ≥40 years from Jiading community in Shanghai were included. We defined famine exposure subgroups as nonexposed (1963–1974), fetal exposed (1959–1962), childhood exposed (1949–1958), and adolescence exposed (1941–1948). MetS was defined based on the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP‐ATP III) criteria. Results Compared with the nonexposed group, the risks of MetS were increased in the fetal‐, childhood‐, and adolescence‐exposed groups with odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of 1.48 (1.23–1.78), 1.89 (1.63–2.20), and 2.34 (1.99–2.74), respectively. After adjusting for sex, age, smoking status, drinking status, education, body mass index (BMI), and physical activity, the increased risk of MetS related to the fetal‐exposed and childhood‐exposed groups with OR and 95% CI of 1.42 (1.04–1.94) and 1.50 (1.02–2.21), respectively, were observed only in women. Famine exposure was significantly associated with MetS among individuals with a BMI < 23 kg/m 2 ( p for interaction between BMI categories and famine exposure = 0.0002 in the whole cohort), while there existed a gender difference ( p = 0.0023 in females, p = 0.4484 in males). When evaluating the joint effects of the combination of famine exposure in early life and general obesity in adulthood on MetS, we observed the highest estimate in participants with both adulthood general obesity and fetal famine exposure (OR 17.52; 95% CI, 10.07–30.48) compared with those without famine exposure nor adulthood obesity. Conclusions Obesity in adulthood significantly further aggravated the risk of MetS in individuals who experienced early life undernutrition, especially in females.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between early life famine exposure and risk of metabolic syndrome in later life

Zhang

et al. 2022

Journal of Diabetes

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“…Exposure to famine in early life, poor lifestyle and an abundance of diet in adulthood might all contribute to a higher risk of NAFLD. 24 Song XC reported that the prevalence of NAFLD in Jiangsu was 36.80% in 2016, 25 higher than that in the Beijing and Jiangxi provinces in China. Age is also a key risk factor of NAFLD.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Association Between NLR and NAFLD in Adults Exposed to Famine in Early Life

Liu¹,

Zhong²,

Li³

et al. 2022

RMHP

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Exposure to famine in early life has been shown to increase the prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is a risk factor for developing NAFLD. However, it is not clear that the association between NLR and NAFLD in individuals who were exposed to famine in early life. Methods: To match for age, we selected two group populations from Xuzhou city, China, on two different occasions, 2013 and 2017. The group recruited in 2013 included participants who were born during a period of great famine in China. Participants in the another group recruited in 2017 were born between 1965 and 1968. Clinical characteristics of individuals as well as serology indexes were examined for all participants. Ultrasonography to diagnose NAFLD was performed by trained doctors. A total of 10,574 participants were included in the final analysis. Results: Individuals born during the famine period have a higher NAFLD prevalence than those who had not been exposed to famine and these findings were similar for both sexes (male: 57.6% vs 48.9%, female: 47.6% vs 40.3%). The prevalence of NAFLD according to NLR quartiles in those exposed to famine was 49.5%, 52.7%, 52.9% and 55.5% for Q1, Q2, Q3 and Q4 NLR, respectively, and was higher than that in nonexposed to famine group. After adjusting for age, BMI, and other metabolic variables, the association between NLR and NAFLD disappeared in the non-famine group. The non-linear relationship between NLR and NAFLD was found in those who had been exposed to famine. Conclusion: Individuals who were exposed to famine in early life have a higher prevalence of NAFLD than those who were not exposed. Compared with lower NLR levels, elevated NLR is a risk factor for developing NAFLD. However, there is a non-linear relationship between NLR and the risk of developing NAFLD.

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“…The DOHaD theory is partly derived from retrospective epidemiological observations of susceptibilities to metabolic disorders in offspring that experienced maternal starvation during gestation, such as in the Dutch Famine in World War II (13,51) and the Great Chinese Famine (52,53). Since the basic structures of all organs are formed and basic cross-talk between organs is constituted during the embryonic and fetal stages, the 'Thrifty Phenotype' hypothesis of acquiring a permanent constitution of low energy consumption in order to adapt to the low nutrient supply in utero is plausible (10).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developmental Origins of Metaflammation; A Bridge to the Future Between the DOHaD Theory and Evolutionary Biology

et al. 2022

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Metabolic syndrome refers to obesity-associated metabolic disorders that increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, coronary diseases, stroke, and other disabilities. Environmental imbalance during the early developmental period affects health and increases susceptibility to non-communicable diseases, including metabolic syndrome, in later life; therefore, the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) theory was established. According to the DOHaD theory, the hypothesis of the energy-saving ‘Thrifty Phenotype’ in undernourished fetuses is one of the well-accepted schemes as a risk of developing metabolic syndrome. This phenotype is evolutionarily advantageous for survival of the fittest in a hangry environment after birth, a strong selection pressure, but increases the risk of developing metabolic syndrome under an obesogenic diet according to the ‘Mismatch’ hypothesis. Increasing evidences support that chronic inflammation pathophysiologically connects obesity to metabolic disorders in metabolic syndrome, leading to the concept of ‘Metaflammation’. ‘Metaflammation’ in humans is proposed to originate from the evolutionary conservation of crosstalk between immune and metabolic pathways; however, few studies have investigated the contribution of evolutionary maladaptation to the pathophysiology of ‘Metaflammation’. Therefore, it is promising to investigate ‘Metaflammation’ from the viewpoint of selective advantages and its ‘Mismatch’ to an unexpected environment in contemporary lifestyles, in consideration of the principal concept of evolutionarily conserved nutrient sensing and immune signaling systems.

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Prenatal exposure to the Chinese famine and the risk of metabolic syndrome in adulthood across consecutive generations

Cited by 13 publications

References 38 publications

Association between early life famine exposure and risk of metabolic syndrome in later life

Association between early life famine exposure and risk of metabolic syndrome in later life

Association Between NLR and NAFLD in Adults Exposed to Famine in Early Life

Developmental Origins of Metaflammation; A Bridge to the Future Between the DOHaD Theory and Evolutionary Biology

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