Abstract
Undernutrition during early life may lead to obesity in adulthood. This study was conducted to examine the relationship between famine exposure during early life and the risk of abdominal obesity in adulthood. A total of 18,984 and 16,594 adults were surveyed in 2002 and 2010–2012 in two nationally representative cross-sectional surveys, namely China Nutrition and Health Survey, respectively. The risk of abdominal obesity was evaluated for participants born during 1956–1961 and compared with that of participants born during 1962–1964. The overall prevalence of abdominal obesity in adulthood showed a positive association with famine exposure during early life. The odds ratios of famine exposure were 1.31 (1.19–1.44) and 1.28 (1.17–1.40) in 2002 during fetal life and infancy and 1.09 (1.00–1.19) in 2012 during fetal life, respectively. The relationships between famine exposure and abdominal obesity across the famine exposure groups were distinct among females and those who lived in urban areas and were physical inactive (p < 0.05). Exposure to famine during early life was associated with increased risks of abdominal obesity in adulthood, which was partially alleviated by healthy lifestyle factors (e.g., physical activity).
Highlights
Overweight and obesity, as well as abdominal obesity, in middle age are strongly related to all-cause mortality and morbidity of chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension and other metabolic diseases [1,2]
A total of 4352 (22.9%) and 6469 (34.1%) participants in China Nutrition and Health Survey (CNHS) 2002 and 4126 (24.9%) and 5975 (36.0%) participants in CNHS 2010–2012 were exposed to the Great Chinese Famine during their fetal and infant period, respectively
In CNHS 2002 and CNHS 2010–2012, the risk of famine exposure associated with abdominal obesity was detected among female, inactive participants, those who lived in urban areas, and those with high level of education (Figure 1)
Summary
Overweight and obesity, as well as abdominal obesity, in middle age are strongly related to all-cause mortality and morbidity of chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension and other metabolic diseases [1,2]. Several risk factors have been considered to be responsible for the development of systemic obesity and abdominal obesity, such as diet, lifestyle, and genetic background [3]. The Developmental Origins of Health and Disease hypothesis suggests that [4,5,6] undernutrition during early life may be associated with obesity. Nutritional status during critical window periods of early life may have long-lasting effects on health in adulthood. Famine study is a commonly used approach to test the hypothesis in humans. Undernutrition is considered as natural exposure in a famine. The Dutch ”hungry winter” famine and the Great Chinese Famine were used to evaluate the “fetal origins” hypothesis [7]
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