Healthy Communities Publications
Parent-Offspring Associations in Body Composition: Findings From the Southampton Women's Survey Prospective Cohort Study
Moon RJ, D'Angelo S, Holroyd CR, Crozier SR, Godfrey KM, Davies JH, Cooper C, Harvey NC.
Context: Children born to parents who are overweight or obese have a high risk of adult obesity, but it is unclear if transgenerational associations relating to unfavorable body composition differ by parent.
Objective: To examine differential mother-offspring and father-offspring associations in body composition in early childhood.
Methods: A total of 240 mother-father-offspring trios from a prospective UK population-based pre-birth cohort (Southampton Women's Survey) were included for anthropometry and dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry assessment of whole-body-less-head body composition in the offspring at 3 different ages (4, 6-7, and 8-9 years) and in the mother and father at the 8- to 9-year offspring visit. Associations were assessed using linear regression adjusting for the other parent.
Results: Positive associations between mother-daughter body mass index (BMI) and fat mass were observed at ages 6 to 7 (BMI: β = .29 SD/SD, 95% CI = .10, .48; fat mass β = .27 SD/SD, 95% CI = .05, .48) and 8 to 9 years (BMI: β = .33 SD/SD, 95% CI = .13, .54; fat mass β = .31 SD/SD, 95% CI = .12, .49), with similar associations at age 4 years but bounding the 95% CI. The mother-son, father-son, and father-daughter associations for BMI and fat mass were weaker at each of the ages studied.
Conclusion: A strong association between the fat mass of mothers and their daughters but not their sons was observed. In contrast, father-offspring body composition associations were not evident. The dimorphic parent-offspring effects suggest particular attention should be given to early prevention of unfavorable body composition in girls born to mothers with excess adiposity.
Healthy Communities
Psychological distress experienced by parents caring for an immunosuppressed child during the COVID-19 pandemic
Corine Driessens, Lynne Mills, Ravin Patel, David Culliford, Diane Gbesemete, Emma Lee, Meera Shaunak, Harry Chappell, Saul N. Faust, Hans de Graaf,
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has proved unique in both its unpredictability and the extent to which it has continued to impact on daily life since March 2020. Among the immunosuppressed population the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic are cumulative to the ever-present challenges of living with a long-term condition. This prospective longitudinal study explored patterns of concern experienced by 467 British parents caring for an immunosuppressed child during the first 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic and related this to parental mental wellbeing. Most parents slowly adapted or were resilient to the ever-changing stressors of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, 12% experienced high levels of concern throughout the first 2 years of the pandemic. This group was also more likely to report emotional mental health problems towards the end of this period. The experience of emotional mental health problems among parents caring for an immunosuppressed child was related to low household income, single parenting, difficult access to greenspace, and higher level of exposure to COVID positive cases and COVID restrictions (North of England). Parents reported that optimism, reduction of isolation, and support promoted coping and management of the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. More reliable COVID information and periodic medical-condition-specific guidance would have been appreciated. These findings can increase clinical awareness of high-risk parental groups and make an important contribution to the planning of appropriate targeted psychological family interventions.
Healthy Communities, COVID-19, Mental Health
Adult diet in England: Where is more support needed to achieve dietary recommendations?
Dianna M. Smith , Christina Vogel, Monique Campbell, Nisreen Alwan, Graham Moon (June 23, 2021)
External web link - https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0252877
Healthy Communities
Implementing a social network intervention: can the context for its workability be created? A quasiethnographic study
Healthy Communities
Public attitudes to a human challenge study with SARS-CoV-2: a mixed-methods study
Healthy Communities
Understanding the early life mediators behind the intergenerational transmission of partnership dissolution
Healthy Communities
Inequalities in energy drink consumption among UK adolescents: a mixed-methods study
Authors: Vogel C, Shaw S, Strömmer S, Crozier S, Jenner S, Cooper C, Baird J, Inskip H, Barker M.
External web link - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36472075/#affiliation-1
Healthy Communities
Household food insecurity risk indices for English neighbourhoods: Measures to support local policy decisions
Healthy Communities
UK government’s new placement legislation is a ‘good first step’: a rapid qualitative analysis of consumer, business, enforcement and health stakeholder perspectives
Sarah Muir, Preeti Dhuria, Emma Roe, Wendy Lawrence, Janis Baird & Christina Vogel
External web link - https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-023-02726-9
Healthy Communities
UK government’s new placement legislation is a ‘good first step’: a rapid qualitative analysis of consumer, business, enforcement and health stakeholder perspectives
Healthy Communities