Genetic and environmental influences on eating behaviors in 2.5- and 9-year-old children: a longitudinal twin study.

Lise Dubois,Daniel Pérusse,Brigitte Bédard,Jaakko Kaprio,Michel Boivin,Richard Tremblay,Maikol Diasparra,Bénédicte Fontaine-Bisson

doi:10.1186/1479-5868-10-134

Abstract

BackgroundEating behaviors during childhood are related both to children’s diet quality and to their weight status. A better understanding of the determinants of eating behavior during childhood is essential for carrying out effective dietary interventions.MethodsWe assessed the contribution of genetic and environmental factors to variations in selected eating behaviors in early and late childhood. Information on eating behaviors came from questionnaires administered to parents of children participating in the Quebec Newborn Twin Study when the twins were 2.5 and 9 years old (n = 692 children). Dichotomous variables were derived and analyzed using structural equation modeling, as part of a classic twin study design. We performed univariate and bivariate longitudinal analyses to quantify sources of variation and covariation across ages, for several eating behavior traits.ResultsWe found moderate to strong heritability for traits related to appetite such as eating too much, not eating enough and eating too fast. Univariate analysis estimates varied from 0.71 (95% CI: 0.49, 0.87) to 0.89 (0.75, 0.96) in younger children and from 0.44 (0.18, 0.66) to 0.56 (0.28, 0.78) in older children. Bivariate longitudinal analyses indicated modest to moderate genetic correlations across ages (rA varying from 0.34 to 0.58). Common genetic influences explained 17% to 43% of the phenotypic correlation between 2.5 and 9 years for these appetite-related behaviors. In 9-year-old children, food acceptance traits, such as refusing to eat and being fussy about food, had high heritability estimates, 0.84 (0.63, 0.94) and 0.85 (0.59, 0.96) respectively, while in younger children, the shared environment (i.e., common to both twins) contributed most to phenotypic variance. Variances in meal-pattern-related behaviors were mostly explained by shared environmental influences.ConclusionsGenetic predispositions explain a large part of the variations in traits related to appetite during childhood, though our results suggest that as children get older, appetite-related behaviors become more sensitive to environmental influences outside the home. Still, for several traits environmental influences shared by twins appear to have the largest relative importance. This finding supports the notion that familial context has considerable potential to influence the development of healthy eating habits throughout childhood.

Highlights

Eating behaviors during childhood are related both to children’s diet quality and to their weight status
Prevalences did not differ between MZ and DZ twins, and overall only a few differences emerged between boys and girls or between ages
The present research contributes to the limited number of twin studies on eating behaviors during childhood

Summary

Introduction

Eating behaviors during childhood are related both to children’s diet quality and to their weight status. A better understanding of the determinants of eating behavior during childhood is essential for carrying out effective dietary interventions. Childhood eating behaviors are attracting increasing interest in nutrition research because they embody various aspects of diet and are related to children’s diet quality and weight status [1,2,3]. A better understanding of eating behavior determinants during childhood is of particular importance for those who plan and carry out dietary interventions and who develop recommendations for parents, schools and other caregivers. A combination of genetic and environmental factors influences eating behaviors. Twin studies can be used to control for genetic effects and further differentiate environmental influences related to life experiences that are shared or not shared by co-twins [7]

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