Prepregnancy maternal obesity is a global health problem and has been associated with offspring metabolic and mental ill-health. However, there is a knowledge gap in understanding potential neurobiological factors related to these associations. This study explored the relation between maternal prepregnancy body mass index (BMI) and offspring brain white matter microstructure at the age of 6, 10, and 26 years in three independent cohorts. Maternal BMI was associated with higher FA and lower MD in multiple brain tracts in offspring aged 10 and 26 years, but not at 6 years of age. Future studies should examine whether our observations can be replicated and explore the potential causal nature of the findings. ; This work was supported by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program [grant agreement no. 633595 DynaHEALTH] and no. 733206 LifeCycle], the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development [ZONMW Vici project 016.VICI.170.200]. The PREOBE cohort was funded by Spanish Ministry of Innovation and Science. Junta de Andalucía: Excellence Projects (P06-CTS-02341) and Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (BFU2012-40254-C03-01). The first phase of the Generation R Study is made possible by financial support from the Erasmus Medical Centre, the Erasmus University, and the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development (ZonMW, grant ZonMW Geestkracht 10.000.1003). The Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 is funded by University of Oulu, University Hospital of Oulu, Academy of Finland (EGEA), Sigrid Juselius Foundation, European Commission (EURO-BLCS, Framework 5 award QLG1-CT-2000-01643), NIH/NIMH (5R01MH63706:02)
Obesity is a global pandemic complex to treat due to its multifactorial pathogenesis—an unhealthy lifestyle, neuronal and hormonal mechanisms, and genetic and epigenetic factors are involved. Scientific evidence supports the idea that obesity and metabolic consequences are strongly related to changes in both the function and composition of gut microbiota, which exert an essential role in modulating energy metabolism. Modifications of gut microbiota composition have been associated with variations in body weight and body mass index. Lifestyle modifications remain as primary therapy for obesity and related metabolic disorders. New therapeutic strategies to treat/prevent obesity have been proposed, based on pre- and/or probiotic modulation of gut microbiota to mimic that found in healthy non-obese subjects. Based on human and animal studies, this review aimed to discuss mechanisms through which gut microbiota could act as a key modifier of obesity and related metabolic complications. Evidence from animal studies and human clinical trials suggesting potential beneficial effects of prebiotic and various probiotic strains on those physical, biochemical, and metabolic parameters related to obesity is presented. As a conclusion, a deeper knowledge about pre-/probiotic mechanisms of action, in combination with adequately powered, randomized controlled follow-up studies, will facilitate the clinical application and development of personalized healthcare strategies. ; Supported by funds from European Union 7th FP KBBE.2013.2.2-02—MyNewGut Project ("Factors influencing the human gut microbiome and its effect on the development of diet-related diseases and brain development", Grant Agreement 613979) and from Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness GD-Brain Projects (SAF2015-69265-c2.2).
The prevalence of childhood obesity continues to increase. Screen time, one of the most documented reasons for the obesogenic environment, enhances childhood obesity, since advertisements for unhealthy food products are still broadcast on channels for children. This is presently one of the main challenges for the government in Spain, since the current laws and obligations are not updated. This study aims to analyze food advertising aimed at children on Spanish television in 2013 and 2018 on children's and general channels to test the e ect of laws and obligations over time. In total, we viewed 512 h of the most viewed channels, two children's and two general channels, during the week and on weekends during specific periods of 2013 and 2018. Food advertising was categorized as core, non-core, and other food advertisement (CFA, NCFA, and OFA, respectively) according to the nutritional profile. A total of 2935 adverts were analyzed, 1263 in 2013 and 1672 in 2018. A higher proportion of NCFAs were broadcast on children's channels than in prior years, rising from 52.2% to 69.8% (p 2.5; p < 0.001), due to exposure to adverts for high-sugar and high-fat foods such as cakes, mu ns, cookies, and fried and frozen meals rich in fat. In conclusion, the trends of nutritional profiles in food advertising on television are worsening over time, since the prevalence of NCFAs was higher in 2018 than in 2013. Currently, CFAs are not mainly broadcast on children's channels, confirming high-risk exposure to non-core food advertising by watching them. Thus, food advertising laws and obligations should be adapted to increase compliance. ; Commission of the European Community's 7th Framework Programme (FP7/2008-2013) within the 6th Framework Programme 212652 007036 ; European Union (EU) QLK1-CT-1999-00888
El estudio de los posibles factores tanto protectores como de riesgo que puedan favorecer o dañar a la mujer durante el embarazo y, por tanto, al niño en el período prenatal y postnatal, se ha convertido hoy en una necesidad y en un objetivo prioritario de salud mundial. Uno de los objetivos de la Atención Temprana es la realización de programas de seguimiento para prevenir, detectar y tratar secuelas en el desarrollo infantil. El seguimiento es el modo de comprobar si el desarrollo se está produciendo dentro de unas pautas de normalidad. Si la detección y el seguimiento de poblaciones de riesgo son unas tareas claves en la atención temprana, no lo son menos la realización de estudios longitudinales que toman a la población normal como objeto de estudio. Actualmente, en diversos países de la Comunidad Europea se están llevando a cabo importantes estudios aleatorizados con seguimiento longitudinal (proyectos NUHEAL, EARNEST, Red de Excelencia INMA) para evaluar el desarrollo global de los niños sanos y el desarrollo mental, en particular. Dentro de los factores asociados al desarrollo mental se encuentran el desarrollo psicomotor y el desarrollo somático. Numerosos estudios muestran que el peso, la talla y el perímetro cefálico son predictores de trastornos del desarrollo cuando se trata de una población de alto riesgo o con alguna patología. El objetivo principal de este estudio es describir la evolución del neurodesarrollo en niños sanos desde el sexto al vigésimo mes de vida. En este artículo se presentan parte de los resultados del Proyecto Europeo NUHEAL. ; The study of the possible protector factors and the risk factors can favour or harm women during pregnancy, and so, the infant during the pre- and post-natal periods, has today become a necessary and a high priority objective of world health. In agreement with this proposal, carrying out follow-up programs to prevent, detect and treat consequences in infant development is one of the objectives of Early Care (EC). The follow-up is the way to verify whether the development of the child is occurring within the guidelines of normalcy, or if there is a suspicion that he may be suffering from delays. In order to do this in an appropriate way, one of the necessary conditions is to have access to the tables and instruments that include up-to-date parameters of the course of overall development in the normal population. If the detection and follow-up of risk populations is a key task in the context of early attention, so are the longitudinal studies that use the normal population as the focus of their study. Currently, in various countries in the European Union, important follow-up studies are being carried out of a multi-disciplinary nature (EARNEST Project, NUHEAL Project, and Spanish INMA Network), with the purpose of evaluating the development of the child in general and, specifically, his mental development. These studies take into account, among others, a series of parameters that contemplate the eating habits of the mother, exposure to environmental contaminants, styles of care and the physical, mental and social follow-up of the development of the children up to ages that include adolescence.
This study analyzed how maternal obesity affected fatty acids (FAs) in breast milk and their association with infant growth and cognition to raise awareness about the programming effect of maternal health and to promote a healthy prenatal weight. Mother–child pairs (n = 78) were grouped per maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI): normal-weight (BMI = 18.5–24.99), overweight (BMI = 25–29.99) and obese (BMI > 30). Colostrum and mature milk FAs were determined. Infant anthropometry at 6, 18 and 36 months of age and cognition at 18 were analyzed. Mature milk exhibited lower arachidonic acid (AA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), among others, than colostrum. Breast milk of non-normal weight mothers presented increased saturated FAs and n6:n3 ratio and decreased a-linolenic acid (ALA), DHA and monounsaturated FAs. Infant BMI-for-age at 6 months of age was inversely associated with colostrum n6 (e.g., AA) and n3 (e.g., DHA) FAs and positively associated with n6:n3 ratio. Depending on the maternal weight, infant cognition was positively influenced by breast milk linoleic acid, n6 PUFAs, ALA, DHA and n3 LC-PUFAs, and negatively a ected by n6:n3 ratio. In conclusion, this study shows that maternal pre-pregnancy BMI can influence breast milk FAs and infant growth and cognition, endorsing the importance of a healthy weight in future generations. ; This research was funded by the European Commission (DynaHEALTH-HORIZON 2020GANo: 633595) and the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (BFU2012-40254-C03-02). Further support was obtained from, Spanish Ministry of Innovation and Science (Junta de Andalucía), Excellence Projects (P06-CTS-02341). ADLGP thanks the Mexican government and the National Council on Science and Technology (CONACYT) for her PhD grant. The funders had no role in the study design, data collection, data analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
Background: Some SNPs related to lipid and energy metabolism may be implicated not only in the development of obesity and associated comorbidities, but also in the weight loss response after a nutritional intervention. Objective: In this context, the present study analyzed four SNPs located within four genes known to be associated with obesity and other obesity-related complications, and their putative role in a weight-loss intervention in overweight/obese adolescents. Methods: The study population consisted of 199 overweight/obese adolescents (13-16 yr old) undergoing 10 weeks of a weight loss multidisciplinary intervention: the EVASYON programme (www.estudioevasyon.org). Adolescents were genotyped for 4 SNPs, and anthropometric measurements and biochemical markers were analyzed at the beginning and after the intervention. Results: Interestingly, APOA5(rs662799) was associated with the baseline anthropometric and biochemical outcomes, whereas FTO (rs9939609) seemed to be related with the change of these values after the 10-week intervention. The other two SNPs, located in the CETP (rs1800777) and the APOA1 (rs670) genes, showed important relationships with adiposity markers. Specifically, a combined model including both SNPs turned up to explain up to 24% of BMI-SDS change after 10 weeks of the multidisciplinary intervention, which may contribute to under - stand the weight loss response. Conclusion: Common variants in genes related to lipid and energy metabolism may influence not only biochemical outcomes but also weight loss response after a multidisciplinary intervention carried out in obese/overweight adolescents. ; Antecedentes: Algunas variantes genéticas relacionadas con el metabolismo lipídico y energético pueden estar implicadas en la respuesta a una intervención nutricional además de estar asociadas con el desarrollo de obesidad y comorbilidades asociadas. Objetivo: En este sentido, este artículo analiza cuatro polimorfismos situados en cuatro genes que han sido previamente asociados con la obesidad u otras complicaciones asociadas a la misma, así como su posible papel en la respuesta a una intervención para la pérdida de peso en adolescentes con sobrepeso u obesidad. Métodos: La población en estudio está formada por 199 adolescentes con sobrepeso u obesidad (13-16 años) llevando a cabo una intervención multidisciplinar de 10 semanas para la pérdida de peso: programa EVASYON (www.estudioevasyon.org). Los adolescentes fueron genotipados para los 4 SNPs y tanto al comienzo como al final de la intervención se analizaron marcadores bioquímicos y se tomaron medidas antropométricas. Resultados: Rs662799 del gen APOA5 se asoció al inicio con parámetros antropométricos y bioquímicos, mientras que el rs9939609 del gen FTO parecía estar asociado con el cambio de estas variables tras 10 semanas de intervención. Las variantes rs1800777 del gen CETP y rs670 del gen APOA1 mostraron una importante asociación con marcadores de adiposidad. Concretamente, un modelo combinado incluyendo los dos polimorfismos logró explicar hasta un 24% del cambio en el IMC-SDS tras 10 semanas de intervención. Conclusión: Variantes genéticas previamente relacionadas con el metabolismo lipídico y energético, pueden repercutir no solamente en valores bioquímicos sino también en la respuesta a una intervención multidisciplinar para la pérdida de peso en adolescentes con sobrepeso u obesidad. ; Research relating to this abstract was funded by grants from the Health Research Fund from the Carlos III Health Institute from Ministry of Health and Consumption, FIS (PI051579, PI051080) for the EVASYON project, Línea Especial, Nutrición y Obesidad (University of Navarra), CIBERobn and RETICS (Gob Navarra). The scholarships to A. Moleres from the Navarra Government is fully acknowledged.
Recent studies have shown that maternal supplementation with folate and long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) during pregnancy may affect children's brain development. We aimed at examining the potential long-term effect of maternal supplementation with fish oil (FO) and/or 5-methyl-tetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF) on the brain functionality of offspring at the age of 9.5–10 years. The current study was conducted as a follow-up of the Spanish participants belonging to the Nutraceuticals for a Healthier Life (NUHEAL) project; 57 children were divided into groups according to mother's supplementation and assessed through functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning and neurodevelopment testing. Independent component analysis and double regression methods were implemented to investigate plausible associations. Children born to mothers supplemented with FO (FO and FO + 5-MTHF groups, n = 33) showed weaker functional connectivity in the default mode (DM) (angular gyrus), the sensorimotor (SM) (motor and somatosensory cortices) and the fronto-parietal (FP) (angular gyrus) networks compared to the No-FO group (placebo and 5-MTHF groups, n = 24) (PFWE < 0.05). Furthermore, no differences were found regarding the neuropsychological tests, except for a trend of better results in an object recall (memory) test. Considering the No-FO group, the aforementioned networks were associated negatively with attention and speed-processing functions. Mother's FO supplementation during pregnancy seems to be able to shape resting-state network functioning in their children at school age and appears to produce long-term effects on children´s cognitive processing. ; European Union (EU) 212652 007036 ; Commission of the European Community within the 5th Framework Program QLK1-CT-1999-00888 ; European Research Council (ERC) 322605 META-GROWTH ; Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities FJCI-2017-33396
Introducción: actualmente existe una gran preocupación relacionada con el contenido de azúcares de los alimentos y bebidas ya que un consumo excesivo se asocia con una mayor prevalencia de enfermedades crónicas no transmisibles. Además, hay una gran confusión tanto en los datos científicos publicados como en las informaciones que aparecen en los medios de comunicación sobre diversos conceptos tales como azúcares libres, azúcares intrínsecos o endógenos y azúcares añadidos a los alimentos, así como sobre el tipo de monosacáridos y disacáridos que forman parte de ellos. El término azúcares libres se refiere a aspectos de salud pública mientras que el de azúcares añadidos se relaciona con la información nutricional incluida en el etiquetado regulado en el Reglamento 1169/2011, aplicable a la información alimentaria facilitada al consumidor. Material y métodos: análisis de la legislación vigente en la Unión Europea y en España, así como en Estados Unidos y México, junto con los posicionamientos de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS), la European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) y la Agencia Española de Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición (AESAN), así como de sus comités científicos sobre la definición y declaración de azúcares totales, azúcares libres y azúcares añadidos. Resultados: los azúcares añadidos se declaran en el etiquetado en países como en Estados Unidos y México. En el caso de Estados Unidos hay una propuesta de modificación del porcentaje que deben contribuir a la dieta, pasando del 10 % al 6 %. En el caso de la Unión Europea solo está establecida la ingesta de referencia para los hidratos de carbono: 45-65 %, al igual que ya lo ha hecho el Comité Científico de la AESAN. Solo en el caso del estudio ANIBES hay un dato aproximado del consumo de azúcares añadidos para la población española: un 7,3 %. Conclusiones: se deben establecer ingestas de referencia para los azúcares añadidos y hacer que se declaren en la información del etiquetado de los productos alimenticios, para poder trabajar con datos fidedignos en las tablas de composición de alimentos, conocer la ingesta real por parte de la población española, y así implementar medidas de salud pública que permitan reducir la ingesta de los mismos en todos los productos alimenticios que los contengan. ; Introduction: there is currently great concern about the sugar content of food and beverages as excessive consumption is associated with a higher prevalence of chronic non-communicable diseases. In addition, there is a great deal of confusion both in published scientific data and in media reports about various concepts such as free sugars, intrinsic or endogenous sugars, and sugars added to food, as well as the type of monosaccharides and disaccharides that are part of them. The term "free sugars" refers to public health aspects whereas the term "added sugars" relates to the nutritional information included in the labelling covered by Regulation 1169/2011 as applicable to food information provided to the consumer. Material and methods: an analysis of the legislation in force in the European Union and Spain, as well as in the United States and Mexico, together with the position statements of the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), and the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN), as well as their Scientific Committees on the definition and declaration of total sugars, free sugars, and added sugars. Results: added sugars are declared on the label in countries such as the United States and Mexico. In the case of the United States, there is a proposal to modify the percentage they should contribute to the diet from 10 % to 6 %. In the case of the European Union, only the reference intake for carbohydrates is established: 45-65 %, as has already been done by the Scientific Committee of AESAN. Only in the case of the ANIBES study is there an approximate figure for the consumption of added sugars by the Spanish population: 7.3 %. Conclusions: reference intakes for added sugars should be established and declared in the information provided on food product labels in order to work with reliable data in the food composition tables, and to assess their real intake by the Spanish population, and thus implement public health measures to reduce their intake in all food products containing them.