The Effect of Growth Rate during Infancy on the Risk of Developing Obesity in Childhood: A Systematic Literature Review.

Anela Halilagic,George Moschonis

doi:10.3390/nu13103449

Abstract

The prevalence of childhood obesity has been trending upwards over the last few decades. Recent evidence suggests that infant growth rate has the potential to increase the risk of obesity development during childhood. This systematic literature review aimed to summarise the existing evidence on the relationship between infant growth rate and subsequent childhood obesity. Studies were sought for that assessed the effect of infant growth rate on outcomes of overweight, obesity, BMI, waist circumference or body composition measures among a population group of children aged 2 to 12 years old. Data sources included PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science and MedLine. Twenty-four studies were identified as eligible and included in this review, out of 2302 publications. The ADA Quality Checklist was used to assess the quality of individual studies. Ten studies received a positive result and 14 studies a neutral result. A narrative synthesis was completed to present study characteristics and results. Several independent positive associations were determined between rapid growth at different stages during infancy and overweight, obesity, BMI, waist circumference and body composition in childhood. Further investigation is required to determine if a specific period of infancy carries greater associations of risk with childhood outcomes. Determining an ideal rate of infants’ growth as a means to minimise the future risk of childhood obesity should be the focus of future research that will also inform early life obesity prevention strategies. Registration no.: CRD42021244029.

Highlights

The global prevalence of obesity has been trending upwards over the last few decades, with the current rate reaching almost triple the rate in 1975
The remaining 2302 references were involved in the title and abstract screening process, which identified 2236 irrelevant studies to be excluded due to a wrong population, exposure, outcome or study design
The results identified a negative association between infant catch-up growth and child BMI z-score (BMIZ) among infants born small for gestational age (SGA), while there was a positive association between the same exposure and outcome among infants born appropriate for gestational age (AGA)

Summary

Introduction

The global prevalence of obesity has been trending upwards over the last few decades, with the current rate reaching almost triple the rate in 1975. Childhood overweight and obesity has been found to track or remain stable from infancy through to childhood and adulthood [2]. This rapid increase in prevalence of obesity among children has led to the classification of childhood obesity as an epidemic [3]. Childhood obesity is associated with higher risks of premature mortality and morbidity in adulthood [4]. It has many other detrimental health risks including breathing difficulties, hypertension, increased risk of fractures, early markers of cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance and psychological effects. Some other health consequences that are often not evident until adulthood are cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders and certain types of cancers [1]

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