Prenatal compared with parental origins of adolescent fatness

Background: Differences in prenatal growth influence postnatal body fat. Objective: The objective was to investigate the role of parental body compo sition on the "tracking" of adolescent fatness. Design: The study population consisted of 1993 white subjects and their par ents. Measurements were taken at birth and again at the age of either 15, 1 6, or 17 y. The newborns were classified in 3 groups: small for gestational age, appropriate for gestational age, and large for gestational age. The m others and fathers of the adolescents were classified into low and high sub groups on the basis of measurements of body mass index (BMI). Similarly, th e mothers of the adolescents were classified into lean and fat subgroups on the basis of measurements of triceps skinfold thickness. Results: Heavy newborns became heavier or fatter adolescents only when the mother or father was also fat and, among heavy newborns, the risk of becomi ng fat adolescents was approximate to5.7 times higher when the mother was f at rather than lean. Conclusions: Large newborns become fat adolescents only when the mother or father is also overweight or fat tie, has either a high BMI or large skinfo ld thickness). These findings suggest that fatness during adolescence is re lated to parental fatness but not to prenatal fatness. Therefore, preventin g higher levels of adiposity among newborns is unlikely to reduce overall a diposity in adolescence.