Trajectories of BMI from early childhood through early adolescence: SES and psychosocial predictors

Abstract

What is already known? Past research has found evidence that patterns of childhood overweight are impacted by socioeconomic status through psychosocial factors like parenting and depression. This evidence is often limited to individual points in time where neglectful, permissive, and authoritarian parenting and higher levels of maternal depression are associated with higher levels of overweight status among children from infancy to adolescence. However, little research has linked together whether the children who receive non-authoritative parenting and are overweight in infancy are the same children who are overweight in adolescence. WHAT DOES THIS STUDY ADD?: • Evidence for 3 different prototypes of BMI percentile growth over the course of childhood approaching adolescence. • Adds complexity re the influence of parenting styles as an influence on patterns of weight gain. • Buttresses existing research as to early and lasting effects of SES on patterns of BMI.

Maternal depression and childhood obesity: A systematic review

“…Both positive (Ertel et al, 2012; Ertel et al, 2010) and null (Ajslev et al, 2010; Ertel et al, 2012; Ertel et al, 2010; Grote et al, 2010; Lane et al, 2013; Wang et al, 2013) associations were observed between maternal depression in the first 6 months of life and child weight outcomes. In a US sample, Ertel et al (2010) observed that children exposed to maternal depression had greater overall adiposity (sum of subscapular skinfold and triceps skinfold thickness) of 1.14mm, but not BMI z-score, central adiposity, or risk for overweight, compared to those not exposed to maternal depression.…”

“…While this positive association was observed in complete-case analysis, this effect was not observed when multiple-imputation methods were employed. The remaining studies failed to find an association between postpartum maternal depression and child weight outcomes, including child overweight (Ajslev et al, 2010; Wang et al, 2013), obesity (Ajslev et al, 2010), growth in child BMI percentile (Lane et al, 2013), or weight-for-length, triceps skinfold thickness, and subscapular skinfold thickness z-score (Grote et al, 2010). …”

“…Maternal depression did not predict group membership (“never overweight”, “ever overweight”, “preschool overweight”, or “elementary overweight”). Lane et al (2013) examined change in child BMI percentile between age 2 and 12 years, identifying three distinct classes of BMI percentile growth. Maternal depression did not predict whether a child was a member of the “stable”, “steady increase”, or “elevated” growth class.…”

“…However, four studies did not adjust for maternal BMI and three studies did not adjust for maternal race. Of these three studies, one was conducted in the US (Lane et al, 2013), and it is likely that race is a particularly relevant confounding variable in US samples. All studies controlled for some relevant confounding variables and seven studies extensively controlled for relevant confounding variables, including maternal age, smoking, parity, gestational weight gain, paternal BMI, child sex, gestational age at birth, and marital status.…”

“… 1, Ajslev et al (2010); 2, Duarte et al (2012); 3, Ertel et al (2010); 4, Ertel et al (2012); 5, Grote et al (2010); 6, Lane et al (2013); 7, O’Brien et al (2007); 8, Santos et al (2010); 9, Wang et al (2013); * studies used data from the same cohort (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development) …”