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European Journal of Nutrition
Published in: European Journal of Nutrition 2/2022

Open Access 01-03-2022 | Original Contribution

Prospective association between a Mediterranean-style dietary score in childhood and cardiometabolic risk in young adults from the ALSPAC birth cohort

Authors: Genevieve Buckland, Caroline M. Taylor, Pauline M. Emmett, Laura Johnson, Kate Northstone

Published in: European Journal of Nutrition | Issue 2/2022

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Abstract

Purpose

To investigate the prospective association between a children’s relative Mediterranean-style diet score (C-rMED) in childhood and a Cardiometabolic Risk (CMR) score in adolescence/young adulthood in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC).

Methods

A C-rMED was calculated at 7, 10 and 13 years from diet diary data. Anthropometric and biochemical data at 17 (N = 1940) and 24 years (N = 1961) were used to calculate CMR scores (sum of sex-specific log-transformed z-scores from triacylglycerol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, mean arterial blood pressure, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and fat mass index (FMI)). Adjusted logistic regression models examined associations between C-rMED (categorical and 2-unit increments) and a high CMR score (≥ 80th percentile) and individual CMR components (≥ 80th percentile).

Results

A high C-rMED at 13 was associated with a 32% (OR 0.68 (95% CI: 0.49, 0.94)) decreased adjusted odds of having a high CMR score at 24 years, compared to participants with a low C-rMED. No associations were evident at other ages. Tracking of the C-rMED across the three ages showed a stronger negative association between C-rMED and CMR at 24 years when children had at least two high C-rMED scores from 7 to 13 years (adjusted OR: 0.49, 95% CI: 0.29, 0.85), compared to all low scores. FMI and HOMA-IR were the main CMR components contributing to this association.

Conclusion

Higher Mediterranean-style diet scores in early adolescence were associated with a better CMR profile in young adults (24 year olds). This underscores the importance of establishing healthy eating habits early in life for future cardiometabolic health.
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Metadata
Title
Prospective association between a Mediterranean-style dietary score in childhood and cardiometabolic risk in young adults from the ALSPAC birth cohort
Authors
Genevieve Buckland
Caroline M. Taylor
Pauline M. Emmett
Laura Johnson
Kate Northstone
Publication date
01-03-2022
Publisher
Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Published in
European Journal of Nutrition / Issue 2/2022
Print ISSN: 1436-6207
Electronic ISSN: 1436-6215
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-021-02652-7

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