Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2022 Feb 12. doi: 10.1111/cen.14687. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To assess the influence of longitudinal weight gain from 0 to 4 years old on dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) levels at 7 years old.
METHODS: DHEAS levels were measured at 7 years old in a subsample of 587 children from the Generation XXI birth cohort. Weight trajectories (0-4 years of age) were identified using model-based clustering and categorized as “normal weight gain”, “weight gain during infancy”, “weight gain during childhood” and “persistent weight gain”. Differences in DHEAS levels at age 7 between the four weight trajectories were analyzed through ANCOVA, adjusted for birth weight (BW) and body mass index (BMI).
RESULTS: In the crude analysis, compared with the “normal weight gain” trajectory [5.53 (95% CI: 5.10-5.98) µmol/L], DHEAS levels were significantly higher in children in the “persistent weight gain” [8.75 (95% CI: 7.23-10.49) µmol/L, p<0.001] and in children in the “weight gain during infancy” trajectories [7.68 (95% CI: 6.22-9.49) µmol/L, p=0.021], and marginally significant higher in children in the “weight gain during childhood” trajectory [6.89 (95% CI: 5.98-8.00) µmol/L; p=0.052]. In BW- and BMI-adjusted model, a statistically significant difference in DHEAS levels was found between the “persistent weight gain” [7.93 (95% CI: 6.43-9.86) µmol/L] and the “normal weight gain” trajectories [5.75 (95% CI: 5.32-6.23) µmol/L; p=0.039].
CONCLUSION: Higher DHEAS levels are found in 7-year-old children following a trajectory of persistent weight gain from 0-4 years, independently of their BW or current BMI, highlighting the impact of exposure to overweight in the first years of life on prepubertal adrenal androgen production. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
PMID:35150162 | DOI:10.1111/cen.14687
