Early life determinants of skeletal growth in children : a longitudinal study
Early life determinants of skeletal growth in children : a longitudinal study
The aim of this thesis was to explore in a unique, large, prospective parent-offspring cohort, the Southampton Women’s Survey (SWS), the relative contribution of parental and childhood factors to bone mass at 4 years old.
Healthy babies were recruited from the SWS. Their mothers had been characterised in detail for body build, lifestyle, physical activity and diet before and during pregnancy. Serum 25(OH)-vitamin D was measured in late pregnancy. 841 children underwent DXA assessment at birth and the remainder of the cohort (n=279), plus a subset of the neonatal DXA group (n=154), underwent DXA assessment at 4 years old. Childhood lifestyle, physical activity, medical history and diet were assessed by questionnaire, and the child was measured and weighed at the visit. Additionally, in a subset of 81 children and their mothers, physical activity was objectively assessed using the Actiheart combined accelerometer and heart rate monitor.
The mutually independent maternal predictors of bone mass at birth included height, parity, and smoking, fat stores and walking speed in late pregnancy. These associations were attenuated by 4 years, with only maternal height still statistically significantly predicting childhood bone mass. Mothers who had low levels of vitamin D in late pregnancy had children with lower bone mass at birth, but this effect was not seen at 4 years. Daily milk intake and Actiheart-measured energy expenditure were the strongest 4-year predictors of bone mass.
These results are consistent with previous findings and suggest that a life course approach to the prevention of osteoporotic fracture is appropriate. Thus public health strategies aimed at optimising the intra-uterine and post-natal environments to maximise bone mineral accrual may reduce the burden of osteoporotic fracture in future generations.
University of Southampton
Harvey, Nicholas C. W
d4168d7c-2c9e-4b16-ad2f-a1fb90cb2645
2006
Harvey, Nicholas C. W
d4168d7c-2c9e-4b16-ad2f-a1fb90cb2645
Harvey, Nicholas C. W
(2006)
Early life determinants of skeletal growth in children : a longitudinal study.
University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.
Record type:
Thesis
(Doctoral)
Abstract
The aim of this thesis was to explore in a unique, large, prospective parent-offspring cohort, the Southampton Women’s Survey (SWS), the relative contribution of parental and childhood factors to bone mass at 4 years old.
Healthy babies were recruited from the SWS. Their mothers had been characterised in detail for body build, lifestyle, physical activity and diet before and during pregnancy. Serum 25(OH)-vitamin D was measured in late pregnancy. 841 children underwent DXA assessment at birth and the remainder of the cohort (n=279), plus a subset of the neonatal DXA group (n=154), underwent DXA assessment at 4 years old. Childhood lifestyle, physical activity, medical history and diet were assessed by questionnaire, and the child was measured and weighed at the visit. Additionally, in a subset of 81 children and their mothers, physical activity was objectively assessed using the Actiheart combined accelerometer and heart rate monitor.
The mutually independent maternal predictors of bone mass at birth included height, parity, and smoking, fat stores and walking speed in late pregnancy. These associations were attenuated by 4 years, with only maternal height still statistically significantly predicting childhood bone mass. Mothers who had low levels of vitamin D in late pregnancy had children with lower bone mass at birth, but this effect was not seen at 4 years. Daily milk intake and Actiheart-measured energy expenditure were the strongest 4-year predictors of bone mass.
These results are consistent with previous findings and suggest that a life course approach to the prevention of osteoporotic fracture is appropriate. Thus public health strategies aimed at optimising the intra-uterine and post-natal environments to maximise bone mineral accrual may reduce the burden of osteoporotic fracture in future generations.
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Published date: 2006
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Local EPrints ID: 466286
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/466286
PURE UUID: 5f4a8e61-2e5e-4f5c-898b-9ba56360f612
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Date deposited: 05 Jul 2022 05:03
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 20:37
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Nicholas C. W Harvey
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