Larske M Soepnel1,2, Veronique Nicolaou1, Christine Slater3, Glory Chidumwa4, Naomi S Levitt5, Kerstin Klipstein-Grobusch2,4, Shane A Norris1,6. 1. SAMRC/Wits Developmental Pathways for Health Research Unit, Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. 2. Julius Global Health, Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands. 3. Independent Consultant, Maryport, UK. 4. Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. 5. Department of Medicine, Chronic Disease Initiative for Africa, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa. 6. Global Health Research Institute, School of Human Development and Health, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Understanding the association between maternal metabolic conditions in pregnancy and the risk of childhood overweight, a growing concern in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), helps to identify opportunities for childhood obesity prevention. AIM: To assess the association between hyperglycaemia first detected in pregnancy (HFDP) (gestational diabetes mellitus [GDM] and diabetes in pregnancy [DIP]) and child obesity and adiposity in pre-school-aged children in South Africa, independently of maternal BMI. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Measurement of anthropometry and fat mass index (FMI) by the deuterium dilution method was done for 102 3-6-year-old children born to mothers with HFDP and 102 HFDP-unexposed children. Hierarchical regression analysis and generalised structural equation modelling (GSEM) were performed. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight/obesity was 10.5% and 11.1% in children exposed to GDM and DIP, respectively, and 3.9% in the HFDP-unexposed group. Log-transformed FMI was significantly higher in the DIP-exposed group (β = 0.166, 95% CI = 0.014-0.217 p= .026), but not when adjusting for maternal pregnancy BMI (β = 0.226, 95% CI = 0.003-0.015, p = .004). GSEM showed significant total effects of maternal BMI and birth weight on FMI/BMI. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal pregnancy BMI seems to play a greater role in the development of childhood adiposity than maternal hyperglycaemia, requiring further research and identifying maternal BMI as a relevant prevention target in our setting.
BACKGROUND: Understanding the association between maternal metabolic conditions in pregnancy and the risk of childhood overweight, a growing concern in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), helps to identify opportunities for childhood obesity prevention. AIM: To assess the association between hyperglycaemia first detected in pregnancy (HFDP) (gestational diabetes mellitus [GDM] and diabetes in pregnancy [DIP]) and child obesity and adiposity in pre-school-aged children in South Africa, independently of maternal BMI. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Measurement of anthropometry and fat mass index (FMI) by the deuterium dilution method was done for 102 3-6-year-old children born to mothers with HFDP and 102 HFDP-unexposed children. Hierarchical regression analysis and generalised structural equation modelling (GSEM) were performed. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight/obesity was 10.5% and 11.1% in children exposed to GDM and DIP, respectively, and 3.9% in the HFDP-unexposed group. Log-transformed FMI was significantly higher in the DIP-exposed group (β = 0.166, 95% CI = 0.014-0.217 p= .026), but not when adjusting for maternal pregnancy BMI (β = 0.226, 95% CI = 0.003-0.015, p = .004). GSEM showed significant total effects of maternal BMI and birth weight on FMI/BMI. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal pregnancy BMI seems to play a greater role in the development of childhood adiposity than maternal hyperglycaemia, requiring further research and identifying maternal BMI as a relevant prevention target in our setting.
Authors: Shane A Norris; Catherine E Draper; Alessandra Prioreschi; C M Smuts; Lisa Jayne Ware; CindyLee Dennis; Philip Awadalla; D Bassani; Zulfiqar Bhutta; Laurent Briollais; D William Cameron; Tobias Chirwa; B Fallon; C M Gray; Jill Hamilton; J Jamison; Heather Jaspan; Jennifer Jenkins; Kathleen Kahn; A P Kengne; Estelle V Lambert; Naomi Levitt; Marie-Claude Martin; Michele Ramsay; Daniel Roth; Stephen Scherer; Daniel Sellen; Wiedaad Slemming; Deborah Sloboda; M Szyf; Stephen Tollman; Mark Tomlinson; Suzanne Tough; Stephen G Matthews; Linda Richter; Stephen Lye Journal: BMJ Open Date: 2022-04-21 Impact factor: 3.006