Abstract
This study examined the association between famine exposure in early life and the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in adulthood during the 1959–1961 Chinese Famine. Two cross-sectional surveys involving randomly selected Chinese adults aged 35–74 years in the Qingdao area were conducted. A total of 9,588 individuals were grouped into four birth cohorts of unexposed (born between January 1, 1962, and December 31, 1975), fetal-exposed (born between January 1, 1959, and December 31, 1961), childhood-exposed (born between January 1, 1949, and December 31, 1958), and adolescence/adult-exposed cohorts (born between January 1, 1931, and December 31, 1948). We assessed the prevalence rate of MetS in relation to famine exposure according to three definitions of MetS by the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III), International Diabetes Federation (IDF), and China Diabetes Society (CDS). According to the CDS criterion, the prevalence rates of MetS were 17.8%, 25.7%, 31.1%, and 45.3% in the unexposed, fetal-, childhood-, and adolescence/adult-exposed cohorts, respectively (P < 0.001). For the CDS criteria, compared with individuals without famine exposure, odds ratios (95% confidence interval) for MetS were 1.36 (1.02–1.81), 1.36 (1.06–1.75), and 1.60 (1.06–2.41) in women and 1.10 (0.79–1.53), 1.07 (0.79–1.42), and 1.21 (0.74–1.99) in men who were exposed in the fetal, childhood, and adolescence/adult periods, respectively, after adjustment for age, study cohorts, residential areas, education levels, income levels, current smoking, and current drinking. The same trend was observed in fetal and childhood exposure for the NCEP-ATP III and IDF definitions, except for a marginal effect in adolescence/adult exposure. Sensitivity analysis revealed that the odds ratios for MetS prevalence for the CDS definition were 1.37 (1.03–1.82), 1.40 (1.09–1.79), and 1.58 (1.04–2.40) among fetal, childhood, and adolescence/adult exposure in rural areas, respectively. The CDS definition is superior to the other definitions for determining the association between famine exposure and MetS with respect to early life. Famine exposure in early life is associated with an increased risk of MetS in later life, especially in women. Early-life malnutrition and later life overnutrition were critical in determining adulthood metabolic disorders.
Highlights
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is characterized as insulin resistance and comprises obesity, hypertension, glucose intolerance and dyslipidemia, and increased risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and other chronic diseases [1, 2]
This study demonstrated a significant association between famine exposure during early life and MetS prevalence in adult women, but not in men
In a subgroup that was formed by segmenting birth-weight data (N = 1,344), we found no association between birth weight and MetS prevalence in the current study
Summary
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is characterized as insulin resistance and comprises obesity, hypertension, glucose intolerance and dyslipidemia, and increased risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and other chronic diseases [1, 2]. Several studies have determined that famine exposure in infants may be associated with obesity [9], hypertension [10], diabetes [11], and MetS [12, 13] in adulthood. No population-based study had compared the famine exposure effect on MetS by definitions from the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III), International Diabetes Federation (IDF), and China Diabetes Society (CDS). In the current study, we conducted two consecutive population-based surveys exposed to the 1959–1961 Chinese Famine during early life, to compare associations between famine exposure and the risk of MetS based on three criteria in adult life
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
