The association between allostatic load and anthropometric measurements among a multiethnic cohort of children

Abstract

Summary Objective: This study investigated if levels of allostatic load (ALoad) differed according to race/ethnicity in children and if ALoad was associated with obesity-related measures. Methods: A multiethnic sample of 307 children aged seven to 12 was evaluated, composed of 39% European American (EA), 35% African American (AA), and 26% Hispanic American (HA) youth. Anthropometric measurements were evaluated by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and other measurements included body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC). Allostatic load scores were estimated based on two different calculations, including seven and eight biomarkers (ALoad1 and ALoad2), respectively. Analyses of variance, independence tests, and multiple regression models were performed. Results: From the total sample, 22.80% (n = 70) of children were characterized as “no load,” 46.58% (n = 143) “low load,” and 30.62% (n = 94) “high load.” Hispanic American children showed the highest ALoad scores (2.07 ± 1.54; 95% CI, 1.73–2.41) compared with AA children (1.71 ± 1.43; 95% CI, 1.43–1.99) and EA children (1.56 ± 1.34; 95% CI, 1.32–1.80) (P < 0.05). Higher scores of ALoad (using both ALoad1 and ALoad2 calculations) were associated with higher BMI, total body fat mass, body percent fat, and WC (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Significant differences in ALoad were observed in children according to race/ethnicity. Increased exposure to stressors captured by ALoad may result in increased risk for excessive adiposity and potential health risk in children. Further, ALoad may serve as a preventive marker for conditions known to continue throughout adulthood.

“Food” and “non-food” self-regulation in childhood: a review and reciprocal analysis

“…This means that ASR involves not only the regulation of energy intake, but also the choice of foods, especially with respect to "healthy" and "unhealthy" diet and food choices [34,35,[158][159][160][161][162]. Finally, in the case of ASR, bottom-up processes can arise in different ways, such as from hunger (and the food could be healthy or unhealthy) versus from the attraction of palatable food, or the sweet taste [136,151], from attraction arising from food having been restricted [163,164], especially for children lower in inhibitory control [121], the desire to eat to regulate emotions [29,118,165,166], and in response to stress [167][168][169][170]. This means that what is being responded to and what or how top-down processes might be drawn on seems variable and uncertain in the case of food and eating: is the same top-down process required in relation to self-regulating responses to foods of large portion size and foods higher in energy density, for example?…”

Autonomic Profile, Physical Activity, Body Mass Index and Academic Performance of School Students

“…In education, BMI has been usually associated with academic results in children and adolescents, showing a negative correlation [11,12]. High BMI values could be signs of an unhealthy lifestyle and increased internal stress in children that could affect their performance at school [13,14]. Physical education at school has structured programs aiming to reach this purpose [15].…”

Allostatic Load and Children’s Disease

“…There is no sufficient data to support the hypothesis that obesity is the source and not the result of stress. (17,18) Mechanisms involved are complex. Obesity is correlated with a low-grade chronic inflammation and high levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1, IL-6, TNF, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1, C-reactive protein that lead to an activation of hypothalamus-pituitary axis and high levels of cortisol.…”

“…The identified aspect refer to abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, hypertriglyceridemia and high blood pressure. (17,18) Regarding the biomarkers that were monitored, the conclusions for children are detailed as follows: Children with high allostatic load have higher levels of triglycerides, PCR and calprotectin when compared to subjects with low allostatic load. (3,20) The interpretation of these biomarkers should be made with precaution because many of them are influenced by total body adiposity and may not be fully associated with allostatic load.…”