Prenatal inflammation was associated with greater offspring adiposity in early childhood, with associations partially explained by maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and driven by Hispanic mother-offspring pairs.
Key Findings
Results
Each increment in the prenatal inflammation z-score was associated with higher offspring BMI z-score after adjusting for offspring age and sex.
Each increment in the prenatal inflammation z-score corresponded with 0.31 (95% CI: 0.14, 0.48) higher BMI z-score in offspring.
This association was attenuated to the null after further adjustment for maternal pre-pregnancy BMI.
Analysis was conducted among 555 mother-offspring pairs in the Healthy Start Study.
Inflammation was measured at approximately 28 gestational weeks using three biomarkers: C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and tumour necrosis factor-α.
Results
Each increment in the prenatal inflammation z-score was associated with higher offspring waist circumference after adjusting for offspring age and sex.
Each increment in the prenatal inflammation z-score corresponded with 1.43 (95% CI: 0.61, 2.25) cm higher waist circumference in offspring.
This association was attenuated to the null after further adjustment for maternal pre-pregnancy BMI.
Waist circumference was measured when offspring were 4–6 years old.
Results
Each increment in the prenatal inflammation z-score was associated with higher offspring percent fat mass after adjusting for offspring age and sex.
Each increment in the prenatal inflammation z-score corresponded with 1.47 (95% CI: 0.43, 2.51) higher %FM in offspring.
After further adjustment for maternal pre-pregnancy BMI, the estimate was attenuated to 0.77 (95% CI: -0.39, 1.94; p = 0.19), but was attenuated less than for BMI z-score and waist circumference.
Percent fat mass was measured using air displacement plethysmography when offspring were 4–6 years old.
Results
The associations of prenatal inflammation with offspring adiposity were driven by Hispanic mother-offspring pairs in stratified analyses.
An exploratory stratified analysis by maternal race/ethnicity was conducted because race/ethnicity is known to modify associations in maternal-child health studies.
Associations were driven by Hispanic mother-offspring pairs specifically.
This stratified analysis was described as exploratory.
Methods
The study used an internally standardised composite inflammation z-score derived from three biomarkers measured at approximately 28 gestational weeks.
Three inflammation biomarkers were measured: C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and tumour necrosis factor-α.
Each biomarker was internally standardised and their average was taken as an indicator of overall exposure to prenatal inflammation.
The study included 555 mother-offspring pairs from the Healthy Start Study (NCT #002273297).
Linear regression was used to examine associations of the prenatal inflammation z-score with offspring outcomes.
Results
Maternal pre-pregnancy BMI partially explained the association between prenatal inflammation and offspring adiposity.
Adjustment for maternal pre-pregnancy BMI attenuated estimates to the null for BMI z-score and waist circumference.
The attenuation was less complete for percent fat mass, with the estimate reduced from 1.47 to 0.77 (p = 0.19) after adjustment.
The paper concludes that the association 'is partially explained by maternal BMI.'