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OBJECTIVES: To test whether preschool academic skills were associated with educational attainment in adolescence and whether associations differed between individuals born preterm and at full term. STUDY DESIGN: This prospective cohort study comprised 6924 individuals, including n = 444 (6.4%) adolescents born preterm (<37 weeks of gestation) from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Preschool academic (mathematics and literacy) skills were rated by teachers at 4-5 years. Educational attainment at 16 years was informed by attaining a General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) in key subjects mathematics and English. Logistic regressions assessed the association between preterm birth, preschool mathematics, and GCSE Mathematics and between preterm birth, preschool literacy, and GCSE English. RESULTS: Similar numbers of adolescents born preterm and at term achieved a GCSE in mathematics and English (53.6 % vs 57.4% and 59.5% vs 63.9%, respectively; P values > .05). Higher preschool academic skill scores in mathematics were associated with greater odds of attaining GCSE Mathematics and preschool literacy skills were associated with GCSE English. Adolescents born preterm with higher preschool mathematics (OR: 1.51, CI: 1.14, 2.00) and literacy skills (OR: 1.57, CI: 1.10, 2.25) were more likely to attain GCSEs in the respective subject than their term-born counterparts with equal levels of preschool skills. CONCLUSIONS: Preschool academic skills in mathematics and literacy are associated with educational attainment of preterm and term-born individuals in adolescence. Children born prematurely may benefit more from preschool mathematics and literacy skills for academic and educational success into adolescence than term-born individuals.
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Alfabetización , Nacimiento Prematuro , Niño , Femenino , Humanos , Recién Nacido , Preescolar , Adolescente , Estudios Longitudinales , Estudios Prospectivos , Escolaridad , MatemáticaRESUMEN
Skin cancer incidence has been increasing worldwide, representing a particularly high burden for populations of European ancestry. Outdoor and indoor tanning using ultraviolet (UV) radiation devices are major risk factors for skin cancer. While tanning behaviours can be modified by targeted interventions to reduce skin cancer rates, there is insufficient evidence on the motivations for tanning preferences and their relationship with pigmentation phenotypes. The present observational and genetically-informed study investigates motives for tanning and the role that pigmentation phenotypes play on outdoor and indoor tanning behaviour in British young adults. This study included 3722 participants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children in South West England, with data on pigmentation features, tanning ability and preferences, and SNP genotypes. Liking to tan and outdoor tanning were strongly influenced by pigmentary traits and tanning ability. However, the association of these phenotypes with UV indoor tanning was weaker. Our results provide evidence to support the implementation of skin cancer preventative interventions that consider individual biological characteristics and motives for undergoing outdoor and indoor tanning.
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Neoplasias Cutáneas , Baño de Sol , Humanos , Estudios Longitudinales , Fenotipo , Pigmentación , Neoplasias Cutáneas/etiología , Neoplasias Cutáneas/genética , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
Our aim was to assess the association between changes in active travel to school and changes in different intensities of physical activity (i.e. moderate - MPA and vigorous - VPA) and time spent sedentary (SED) among adolescents and assess the moderating effect of children's sex, age and weight status. Data from six cohort studies in the International Children's Accelerometry Database were used (4108 adolescents aged 10-13y at baseline, with 1.9±0.7y of follow-up). Participants self-reported travel mode to school at baseline and follow-up. Mutually exclusive categories of change were created using passive (e.g. by car) or active (cycling or walking) forms of transport (active/active, passive/active, active/passive, passive/passive). Multilevel linear regression analyses assessed associations with change in accelerometer-assessed time spent MPA, VPA and SED, adjusting for potential confounders. The moderation of sex, age and weight status was tested though the inclusion of interaction terms in the regression models. Relative to those remaining in active travel (active/active), participants classified as passive/active increased VPA (B: 2.23 min/d; 95%CI: 0.97-3.48), while active/passive (MPA: -5.38min/d; -6.77 to -3.98; VPA: -2.92min/d; -4.06 to -1.78) and passive/passive (MPA: -4.53min/d; -5.55 to -3.50; VPA: -2.84min/d; -3.68 to -2.01) decreased MPA and VPA. There were no associations with SED. An interaction was observed, age group moderated the association with change in VPA: among 12-13y-olds a greater increase in VPA was observed for the passive/active group compared to active/active. Promoting active travel to school can be a strategy to attenuate the decline in physical activity through adolescence.
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Acelerometría , Conducta Sedentaria , Adolescente , Niño , Ejercicio Físico , Humanos , Instituciones Académicas , CaminataRESUMEN
Pigmentation characteristics are well-known risk factors for skin cancer. Polymorphisms in pigmentation genes have been associated with these traits and with the risk of malignancy. However, the functional relationship between genetic variation and disease is still unclear. This study aims to assess whether pigmentation SNPs are associated with pigmentary traits and skin cancer via DNA methylation (DNAm). Using a meta-GWAS of whole-blood DNAm from 36 European cohorts (N = 27,750; the Genetics of DNA Methylation Consortium, GoDMC), we found that 19 out of 27 SNPs in 10 pigmentation genes were associated with 391 DNAm sites across 30 genomic regions. We examined the effect of 25 selected DNAm sites on pigmentation traits, sun exposure phenotypes and skin cancer and on gene expression in whole blood. We uncovered an association of DNAm site cg07402062 with red hair in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). We also found that the expression of ASIP and CDK10 was associated with hair colour, melanoma and basal cell carcinoma. Our results indicate that DNAm and expression of pigmentation genes may play a role as potential mediators of the relationship between genetic variants, pigmentation phenotypes and skin cancer and thus deserve further scrutiny.
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Proteína de Señalización Agouti/genética , Carcinoma Basocelular/genética , Quinasas Ciclina-Dependientes/genética , Metilación de ADN , ADN de Neoplasias/genética , Melanoma/genética , Proteínas de Neoplasias/genética , Neoplasias Cutáneas/genética , Pigmentación de la Piel/genética , Proteína de Señalización Agouti/metabolismo , Carcinoma Basocelular/metabolismo , Quinasas Ciclina-Dependientes/metabolismo , ADN de Neoplasias/metabolismo , Estudio de Asociación del Genoma Completo , Humanos , Estudios Longitudinales , Melanoma/metabolismo , Proteínas de Neoplasias/metabolismo , Neoplasias Cutáneas/metabolismoRESUMEN
PURPOSE: Examine associations between childhood behavioural problems with criminal behaviour, emotional disorders, substance use and unemployment in early adulthood in two birth cohorts from a middle- and high-income country. METHODS: Data were utilised from large, prospective birth cohorts in Brazil (1993 Pelotas Birth Cohort; N = 3939) and the UK (Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children; ALSPAC; N = 5079). Behavioural problems were reported on by parents at age 11 years (including disobeys, temper, lies, fights, steals). Outcomes (assessed with youth between ages 22 and 24 years) included criminal behaviour, emotional disorders, substance use and NEET (not in education, employment or training). RESULTS: In both cohorts, children with 'conduct problems' (those with increased probability of all five behaviours at age 11), were at higher risk of criminal behaviour, emotional disorders and NEET in adulthood compared to those with 'low problems'. Associations for 'conduct problems' were stronger in Pelotas compared to ALSPAC for hazardous alcohol use [Pelotas: risk ratio = 1.39, 95% CI = 1.14-1.70; ALSPAC: risk ratio = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.57-1.02] and illegal drug use [Pelotas: risk ratio = 1.32, 95% CI = 1.16-1.50; ALSPAC: risk ratio = 1.05, 95% CI = 0.91-1.20], whereas associations for criminal behaviour [Pelotas: risk ratio = 1.92, 95% CI = 1.29-2.86; ALSPAC: risk ratio = 2.75, 95% CI = 2.04-3.73] and NEET [Pelotas: risk ratio = 1.38, 95% CI = 1.13-1.70; ALSPAC: risk ratio = 3.04, 95% CI = 1.99-4.65] were stronger in ALSPAC. CONCLUSIONS: Childhood conduct problems were associated with criminal behaviour, emotional disorders and unemployment in adulthood in both Brazil and the UK. Additional associations were found for substance use in Brazil.
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Mendelian randomization (MR) has been increasingly used to strengthen causal inference in observational epidemiology. Methodological developments in the field allow detecting and/or adjusting for different potential sources of bias, mainly bias due to horizontal pleiotropy (or "off-target" genetic effects). Another potential source of bias is nonrandom matching between spouses (i.e., assortative mating). In this study, we performed simulations to investigate the bias caused in MR by assortative mating. We found that bias can arise due to either cross-trait assortative mating (i.e., assortment on two phenotypes, such as highly educated women selecting taller men) or single-trait assortative mating (i.e., assortment on a single phenotype), even if the exposure and outcome phenotypes are not the phenotypes under assortment. The simulations also indicate that bias due to assortative mating accumulates over generations and that MR methods robust to horizontal pleiotropy are also affected by this bias. Finally, we show that genetic data from mother-father-offspring trios can be used to detect and correct for this bias.
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Sesgo , Análisis de la Aleatorización Mendeliana , Reproducción/genética , Estatura/genética , Niño , Simulación por Computador , Padre , Femenino , Genotipo , Humanos , Análisis de los Mínimos Cuadrados , Masculino , Modelos Genéticos , Madres , Fenotipo , Análisis de RegresiónRESUMEN
Dietary intake during pregnancy may influence child neurodevelopment and cognitive function. This study aims to investigate the associations between dietary patterns obtained in pregnancy and intelligence quotients (IQ) among offspring at 8 years of age. Pregnant women enrolled in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children completed a food frequency questionnaire at 32 weeks' gestation (n = 12,195). Dietary patterns were obtained by cluster analysis. Three clusters best described women's diets during pregnancy: "fruit and vegetables," "meat and potatoes," and "white bread and coffee." The offspring's IQ at 8 years of age was assessed using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children. Models, using variables correlated to IQ data, were performed to impute missing values. Linear regression models were employed to investigate associations between the maternal clusters and IQ in childhood. Children of women who were classified in the meat and potatoes cluster and white bread and coffee cluster during pregnancy had lower average verbal (ß = -1.74; p < .001 and ß = -3.05; p < .001), performance (ß = -1.26; p = .011 and ß = -1.75; p < .001), and full-scale IQ (ß = -1.74; p < .001 and ß = -2.79; p < .001) at 8 years of age when compared to children of mothers in the fruit and vegetables cluster in imputed models of IQ and all confounders, after adjustment for a wide range of known confounders including maternal education. The pregnant women who were classified in the fruit and vegetables cluster had offspring with higher average IQ compared with offspring of mothers in the meat and potatoes cluster and white bread and coffee cluster.
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Dieta , Pruebas de Inteligencia , Efectos Tardíos de la Exposición Prenatal , Pan , Niño , Café , Dieta/clasificación , Registros de Dieta , Femenino , Frutas , Humanos , Inteligencia/fisiología , Estudios Longitudinales , Fenómenos Fisiologicos Nutricionales Maternos , Carne , Embarazo , Solanum tuberosum , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , VerdurasRESUMEN
The aim of this study was to explore the association between parental separation during childhood (up to 18 years of age) and cardiometabolic risk factors (body mass index, fat mass index, blood pressure, physical activity, smoking, and alcohol consumption) in late adolescence using a cross-cohort comparison and to explore whether associations differ according to the age at which the parental separation occurred and the presence or absence of parental conflict prior to separation. Data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC, United Kingdom) (1991-2011) and the 1993 Pelotas Birth Cohort (Brazil) (1993-2011) were used. The associations of parental separation with children's cardiometabolic risk factors were largely null. Higher odds of daily smoking were observed in both cohorts for those adolescents whose parents separated (for ALSPAC, odds ratio = 1.46; for Pelotas Birth Cohort, odds ratio = 1.98). Some additional associations were observed in the Pelotas Birth Cohort but were generally in the opposite direction to our a priori hypothesis: Parental separation was associated with lower blood pressure and fat mass index, and with more physical activity. No consistent differences were observed when analyses were stratified by child's age at parental separation or parental conflict.
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Enfermedades Cardiovasculares/epidemiología , Divorcio/estadística & datos numéricos , Padres , Adolescente , Factores de Edad , Consumo de Bebidas Alcohólicas/epidemiología , Presión Sanguínea , Índice de Masa Corporal , Pesos y Medidas Corporales , Brasil/epidemiología , Niño , Preescolar , Ejercicio Físico , Femenino , Humanos , Estudios Longitudinales , Masculino , Factores de Riesgo , Fumar/epidemiología , Factores Socioeconómicos , Reino Unido/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
Little is known about how dietary patterns of mothers and their children track over time. The objectives of this study are to obtain dietary patterns in pregnancy using cluster analysis, to examine women's mean nutrient intakes in each cluster and to compare the dietary patterns of mothers to those of their children. Pregnant women (n = 12 195) from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children reported their frequency of consumption of 47 foods and food groups. These data were used to obtain dietary patterns during pregnancy by cluster analysis. The absolute and energy-adjusted nutrient intakes were compared between clusters. Women's dietary patterns were compared with previously derived clusters of their children at 7 years of age. Multinomial logistic regression was performed to evaluate relationships comparing maternal and offspring clusters. Three maternal clusters were identified: 'fruit and vegetables', 'meat and potatoes' and 'white bread and coffee'. After energy adjustment women in the 'fruit and vegetables' cluster had the highest mean nutrient intakes. Mothers in the 'fruit and vegetables' cluster were more likely than mothers in 'meat and potatoes' (adjusted odds ratio [OR]: 2.00; 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.69-2.36) or 'white bread and coffee' (OR: 2.18; 95% CI: 1.87-2.53) clusters to have children in a 'plant-based' cluster. However the majority of children were in clusters unrelated to their mother dietary pattern. Three distinct dietary patterns were obtained in pregnancy; the 'fruit and vegetables' pattern being the most nutrient dense. Mothers' dietary patterns were associated with but did not dominate offspring dietary patterns.
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Fenómenos Fisiológicos Nutricionales Infantiles , Dieta , Fenómenos Fisiologicos Nutricionales Maternos , Relaciones Madre-Hijo , Adulto , Índice de Masa Corporal , Pan , Niño , Análisis por Conglomerados , Femenino , Frutas , Humanos , Modelos Logísticos , Estudios Longitudinales , Carne , Micronutrientes/administración & dosificación , Madres , Evaluación Nutricional , Embarazo , Análisis de Componente Principal , Factores Socioeconómicos , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Verduras , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Many low- and middle-income countries have high levels of violence. Research in high-income countries shows that risk factors in the perinatal period are significant precursors of conduct problems which can develop into violence. It is not known whether the same early influences are important in lower income settings with higher rates of violence. This study compared perinatal and sociodemographic risk factors between Brazil and Britain, and their role in explaining higher rates of conduct problems and violence in Brazil. METHODS: Prospective population-based birth cohort studies were conducted in Pelotas, Brazil (N = 3,618) and Avon, Britain (N = 4,103). Eleven perinatal and sociodemographic risk factors were measured in questionnaires completed by mothers during the perinatal period. Conduct problems were measured in questionnaires completed by mothers at age 11, and violence in self-report questionnaires completed by adolescents at age 18. RESULTS: Conduct problems were predicted by similar risk factors in Brazil and Britain. Female violence was predicted by several of the same risk factors in both countries. However, male violence in Brazil was associated with only one risk factor, and several risk factor associations were weaker in Brazil than in Britain for both females and males. Almost 20% of the higher risk for conduct problems in Brazil compared to Britain was explained by differential exposure to risk factors. The percentage of the cross-national difference in violence explained by early risk factors was 15% for females and 8% for males. CONCLUSIONS: A nontrivial proportion of cross-national differences in antisocial behaviour are related to perinatal and sociodemographic conditions at the start of life. However, risk factor associations are weaker in Brazil than in Britain, and influences in other developmental periods are probably of particular importance for understanding male youth violence in Brazil.
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Trastorno de la Conducta/epidemiología , Comparación Transcultural , Pobreza/estadística & datos numéricos , Violencia/estadística & datos numéricos , Adolescente , Adulto , Distribución por Edad , Brasil/epidemiología , Niño , Estudios de Cohortes , Femenino , Humanos , Recién Nacido , Masculino , Madres , Embarazo , Estudios Prospectivos , Factores de Riesgo , Autoinforme , Distribución por Sexo , Factores Socioeconómicos , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Reino Unido/epidemiología , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and mild intellectual disability (ID) are a clinically distinct ADHD subgroup. STUDY DESIGN: This was a cross-sectional study comparing clinical characteristics (ADHD subtypes, total number of symptoms, and rates of common comorbidities) between children with ADHD and mild ID and those with ADHD and IQ test scores >70, and also between children with ADHD and ID and a general population sample of children with ID alone. The sample comprised a clinical sample of children with ADHD with ID (n = 97) and without ID (n = 874) and a general population sample of children with ID and without ADHD (n = 58). RESULTS: After correcting for multiple statistical tests, no differences were found between the 2 ADHD groups on any measure except the presence of conduct disorder (CD) symptoms and diagnoses. Children with ADHD and ID had higher rates of both (OR, 2.38; 95% CI, 1.71-3.32 and OR, 2.69; 95% CI, 1.69-4.28, respectively). Furthermore, children with ADHD and ID had significantly higher rates of oppositional defiant disorder (OR, 5.54; 95% CI, 2.86-10.75) and CD (OR, 13.66; 95% CI, 3.25-57.42) symptoms and a higher incidence of oppositional defiant disorder diagnoses (OR, 30.99; 95% CI, 6.38-150.39) compared with children with ID without ADHD. CONCLUSION: Children with ADHD and mild ID appear to be clinically typical of children with ADHD except for more conduct problems. This finding has implications for clinicians treating these children in terms of acknowledging the presence and impact of ADHD symptoms above and beyond ID and dealing with a comorbid CD.