Maternal adiposity inversely associates with physical activity in 2‐year‐old girls

Abstract

BackgroundAnimal studies suggest that maternal obesity and high fat diet during pregnancy program physical activity (PA) patterns in the offspring. However, such nexus has not been established in humans. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of maternal adiposity measured early in pregnancy with offspring PA at age 2 years while taking into consideration confounding and modifying factors.MethodsWomen (n=152) were enrolled early in pregnancy (<10 weeks). At enrollment, maternal adiposity [air displacement plethysmography, fat mass index (FMI, kg/m2] was measured, and maternal dietary quality (Healthy Eating Index), age, race, and education level were assessed. Gestational weight gain was measured at the research facility. Offspring birthweight and sex were self‐reported. At age 2 years, parental feeding practices (child feeding questionnaire) were assessed whereas anthropometrics (length and weight) and physical activity (ankle worn accelerometers) were objectively measured. Offspring body mass index z‐scores were calculated. Generalized linear regression analysis with a natural log link was done to model the association of maternal FMI and offspring PA. The interaction between maternal FMI and covariates (i.e., all variables listed above) was assessed. Our final model was created using principles of purposeful selection. The best subset of these terms was identified by observation of minimum model AIC statistic.ResultsThere was interaction between maternal FMI and offspring sex in association with offspring total PA [average activity counts (AC)/day] at 2 years of age. Specifically, PA decreased with increasing maternal FMI but only in girls (β=‐0.02, p=0.0470). In addition, total PA was higher in children born to women with college education compared to children born to women without college education (β=0.09, p=0.0369). Minutes spent in sedentary time increased (β= 0.01, p=0.0422) while minutes spent in light PA tended to decrease (β=‐0.01, p=0.0536) with increasing maternal FMI in girls compared to boys.ConclusionsThere is sexual dimorphism in the association of maternal adiposity measured early in pregnancy with offspring PA at age 2 years. PA levels in 2‐year‐old girls was negatively associated with increasing maternal adiposity.