ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Maternal diet during pregnancy may contribute to the risk of offspring adiposity. OBJECTIVES: The objective of the study is to explore the associations between maternal antenatal dietary fatty acid intake and the risk of offspring overweight and obesity at the ages of 2 to 7 years. METHODS: In a prospective Finnish birth cohort with 3807 mother-child pairs, maternal diet in late pregnancy was assessed with a food frequency questionnaire. Intakes of total fatty acids and individual saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) were calculated. Generalized estimating equation models were used to study the associations of maternal dietary variables with repeatedly measured offspring overweight and obesity. RESULTS: In girls, maternal intake ratio of n-6:n-3 PUFAs had a U-shaped association with obesity (adjusted OR for the lowest 2.0 [95% CI 1.27-3.20] and the highest 1.7 [1.03-2.73] vs. the two middle quartiles of n-6:n-3 PUFAs, p = 0.01). In boys, arachidonic acid (20:4n-6): docosahexaenoic acid + eicosapentaenoic acid ratio was associated with obesity (adjusted OR for the lowest 1.0 [0.60-1.57] and the highest 0.5 [0.26-0.88] vs. the two middle quartiles, p = 0.02). Saturated fatty acids and monounsaturated fatty acids were not associated with overweight or obesity in either sex. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal intakes of PUFAs in late pregnancy were associated with risk of later obesity differently in girls and boys.
Subject(s)
Adiposity/physiology , Fatty Acids/administration & dosage , Overweight/etiology , Pediatric Obesity/etiology , Anthropometry , Child , Child, Preschool , Cohort Studies , Diet , Fatty Acids/adverse effects , Feeding Behavior , Female , Finland , Humans , Male , Mothers , Overweight/epidemiology , Pediatric Obesity/epidemiology , Pregnancy , Prospective Studies , Risk Assessment , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Recognizing correlates of low physical activity (PA) can help in targeting PA interventions for individuals who would benefit most from increasing their PA. We studied the associations of demographic, social, health, and lifestyle factors with low PA by sex in a population sample of 1,303 Finnish individuals aged 57-78 years. We defined low PA as no moderate or vigorous leisure-time PA reported in an interview. Altogether, 39% of men and 48% of women reported low PA. Satisfactory or poor perceived health and high BMI were independently associated with low PA in both sexes. In men, factors such as age, being divorced or separated, still working, having a weak social network, poor diet, and a health professional's suggestion to increase PA were associated with low PA. In women, cardiovascular disease and depressive symptoms were associated with low PA. These results can be applied in targeting PA interventions.
Subject(s)
Aging/physiology , Cardiovascular Diseases/physiopathology , Depressive Disorder/physiopathology , Exercise/physiology , Life Style , Motor Activity/physiology , Aged , Body Mass Index , Cardiovascular Diseases/epidemiology , Depressive Disorder/epidemiology , Female , Finland , Humans , Leisure Activities , Logistic Models , Male , Middle Aged , Risk AssessmentABSTRACT
The aim of the study was to describe the levels and to create reference values of cardiorespiratory fitness, expressed as maximal oxygen consumption (VO(2max) ), maximal metabolic equivalents (METs) and maximal workload in aging men and women. We measured VO(2max) directly by a breath-by-breath method during a maximal exercise stress test on a bicycle ergometer with a linear workload increase of 20 W/min in a representative population sample of 672 men and 677 women aged 57-78 years. We presented the age and sex-specific categories of cardiorespiratory fitness (very low, low, medium, high and very high) based on variable distribution and non-linear regression models of VO(2max) , maximal METs and maximal workload. The linear age-related decrement of VO(2max) was -0.047 L/min/year (-2.3%) and -0.404 mL/kg/min/year (-1.6%) in men and -0.027 L/min/year (-1.9%) and -0.328 mL/kg/min/year (-1.6%) in women. After exclusion of diseased individuals, the rate of VO(2max) decrement remained similar. The number of chronic diseases (0, 1, 2 or ≥3) was inversely associated with VO(2max) in men (P<0.001) and women (P<0.001). The present study provides clinically useful reference values of cardiorespiratory fitness for primary and secondary prevention purposes in aging people.
