Do maternal grandmothers influence breastfeeding duration and infant nutrition? Evidence from Merida, Mexico.

Objectives: Breast-feeding is sensitive to somatic, hormonal, behavioral and psychological components of maternal capital. However, through grandmothering, older women may also influence breast-feeding by transferring informational resources to their daughters. We hypothesized that mothers with prolonged instrumental support from their own mother are more likely to have received advice and to have favorable attitudes/practices regarding breastfeeding, compared to those lacking such support, with implications for the grandchild's somatic capital.

The relationship between pre-pregnancy BMI and energy and macronutrients intakes during pregnancy in women from Yucatan, Mexico.

In this observational study, our aim was to analyse the association between pre-pregnancy BMI and adequacy rates of energy and macronutrient intakes in a sample of pregnant women from Yucatan, Mexico. From September to December 2019, we collected data on socioeconomic, pregnancy, and dietary characteristics, and took anthropometric measurements of women during household visits. Pre-pregnancy BMI was calculated from measured height and self-reported body weight.

Development of birthweight and length for gestational age and sex references in Yucatan, Mexico.

Objective: To develop sex- and gestational age specific reference percentiles and curves for birth weight and length for Yucatec neonates using data from birth registers of infants born during 2015-2019.

Material And Methods: Observational, descriptive, epidemiologic study in a 5-year period including every registered birth in the state of Yucatan, Mexico using birth registries. A total of 158 432 live, physically healthy singletons (76 442 females and 81 990 males) between 25 and 42 weeks of gestation were included in the analysis.

The Associations Between Maternal Socioeconomic Factors and Adequacy of Energy and Macronutrient Intakes in Pregnant Women From Yucatan, Mexico.

Background: Socioeconomic factors influence diet quality during pregnancy. However, a dearth of evidence about the influence on energy and macronutrients adequacy calls for research.

Objective: To analyze the association between socioeconomic factors and adequacy rates of energy and macronutrient intakes in pregnant women from Merida, Yucatan, Mexico.

Maternal Grandmothers' Household Residency, Children's Growth, and Body Composition Are Not Related in Urban Maya Families from Yucatan.

This study analyzes the influence of grandmothers' household residency on the presence of low height-for-age and excessive fat (FMI = fat mass [kg]/height [m]), waist circumference, and sum of triceps and subscapular skinfolds in a sample of 247 6- to 8-year-old urban Maya children from Yucatan, Mexico. Between September 2011 and January 2014, we obtained anthropometric and body composition data from children and mothers, as well as socioeconomic characteristics of participants and households. Grandmothers' place of residence was categorized as either in the same household as their grandchildren (n = 71) or in separate households (n = 176).

Does maternal grandmother's support improve maternal and child nutritional health outcomes? Evidence from Merida, Yucatan, Mexico.

In humans, high levels of investment are required to raise offspring, because of the prolonged developmental period and short interbirth intervals. The costs borne by individual mothers may be mitigated by obtaining social support from others. This strategy could be particularly valuable for first-time mothers, who lack first-hand experience and whose offspring have higher mortality risk than later-born siblings.

Birth weight and body composition in 6-to-8 years old Maya children.

Objective: To test the hypothesis that fetal growth, indexed by birth weight (BW), induce metabolic adjustments in the fetus that will be reflected in differences in body composition in a sample of 6-to 8-years old urban Maya children from Yucatan, Mexico.

Methods: We measured height (cm), weight (kg) and triceps skinfold (mm) in 260 children (boys: 132, girls: 128), and height (cm) and weight (kg) in their mothers. Body composition was estimated in children through bioelectrical impedance analysis.

The timing of adrenarche in Maya girls, Merida, Mexico.

Background: Adrenarche involves maturation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and increased production of dehydroepiandrosterone and its sulfate ester, dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (DHEA-S). It occurs at ages 6 to 8 in industrialized populations, marking the transition from childhood to juvenility and cognitive development at middle childhood. Studies in subsistence level populations indicate a later age (8-9) for adrenarche, but only two such studies currently exist for comparison.

Birth weight, birth order, and age at first solid food introduction influence child growth and body composition in 6- to 8-year-old Maya children: The importance of the first 1000 days of life.

Objectives: To analyze the relationship of birth weight, birth order, breastfeeding duration, and age of introduction of solid foods with height, fat mass, and fat-free mass in a sample of Maya children when aged 6 to 8 years old.

Methods: We collected data on anthropometry, body composition, children's birth weight, birth order, early feeding practices, and household socioeconomic characteristics in a sample of 260 Maya children aged 6 to 8 years living in Merida and Motul, two cities in Yucatan, Mexico. Multiple regression models were performed to identify variables associated with height-for-age (HAZ), fat mass index (FMI), and fat-free mass index (FFMI).

Body Mass Index in Mother and Child Dyads and its Association With Household Size and Parents' Education in 2 Urban Settings of Yucatan, Mexico.

Background: Overweight/obesity (OW/OB) coexists in mother-child dyads. However, a dearth of evidence on the factors associated with this phenomenon calls for research.

Objective: To analyze the association of sociodemographic factors with OW/OB in a sample of 260 Maya mother-child dyads from Yucatan, Mexico.

Body proportionality and adiposity are not related in 6- to 8-year-old Yucatec Maya children.

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the association between relative leg length (RLL) (leg length × 100/height) and adiposity in a sample of 6- to 8-year-old children of Maya ancestry from Motul and Merida, Mexico.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 260 children (128 girls) measured between 2011 and 2015. The RLL was used as a measure of body proportionality.

Caesarean birth and adiposity parameters in 6- to 8-year-old urban Maya children from two cities of Yucatan, Mexico.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to analyze the association between birth mode and fat mass index (FMI = fat mass [kg]/height [m] ), and z-score values of waist circumference (WCZ) and sum of triceps and subscapular skinfolds (SumSkfZ) in a sample of 256 6- to 8-year-old urban Maya children from the cities of Merida and Motul in Yucatan, Mexico.

Methods: From September 2011 to January 2014, we measured height, weight, waist circumference and skinfolds in children, and height and weight in their mothers. Body composition was estimated in both generations through bioelectrical impedance analysis.

New linear regression equations to calculate body height from tibial length in modern Maya populations.

Height cannot always be measured directly, hence the need for height estimation formulae. This study presents two new linear regression equations for estimating height from tibial length among Maya populations. Body height and percutaneous tibial length were measured in two living Maya samples from the state of Yucatan, Mexico.

Living conditions and change in age of menarche in adult Maya mothers and daughters from Yucatan, Mexico.

Objectives: To analyze whether living conditions, experienced by mothers and adult daughters during their childhood, are associated with age at menarche (AAM) in daughters.

Methods: From September, 2011, to January, 2014, AAM and childhood living conditions were collected from a sample of 246 dyads of Maya mothers (mean age = 59.60 years, SD = 8.

Preece-Baines Model 1 to Estimate Height and Knee Height Growth in Boys and Girls From Merida, Mexico.

Background: Height and body segments in children have differential pubertal growth characteristics. Lower leg length is a sensitive indicator of child's nutritional status.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to estimate differential timing and tempo of height and knee height (KH) growth in 9- to 17-year-old boys (n = 475) and girls (n = 500) from Merida, Mexico.

Maternal height and its relationship to offspring birth weight and adiposity in 6- to 10-year-old Maya children from poor neighborhoods in Merida, Yucatan.

Objective: To analyze the relationship between maternal height, offspring birth weight, and adiposity at 6-10 years of age in a sample of 197 mother-child dyads from Merida, Mexico.

Materials And Methods: During 2008-2009 and 2011-2013, measurements were taken of maternal height and weight; and height, waist circumference (WC), and skinfolds (triceps, subscapular, and suprailiac) of their children. Participant body composition was estimated using a bioelectrical impedance analyzer.

Height Growth and Percentage of Body Fat in Relation to Early Menarche in Girls from Merida, Yucatan, Mexico.

Early menarche (EM) (i.e., age at menarche [AAM] <12 years of age) is related to short height and higher body fatness.

Waist circumference cut-off in relation to body mass index and percentage of body fat in adult women from Merida, Mexico.

Waist circumference (WC) as an index of central obesity is related to body mass index (BMI) and percent body fat (PBF). Waist circumference data were analyzed to identify a WC cut-off for adult women with respect to BMI-based obesity (≥ 30 kg/m²) and PBF. The sample was 138 women aged 22 to 41 years with Maya ancestry (based on surnames) in Merida, Yucatan, measured during 2011 - 2013.

Intergenerational changes in knee height among Maya mothers and their adult daughters from Merida, Mexico.

Objectives: To analyze differences in knee height (KH) between adult Maya mothers and daughters in Merida City, Mexico, and determine if these differences are associated with their childhood socioeconomic conditions.

Methods: From September 2011 to January 2014, we measured KH and collected data on childhood conditions (place of birth, type of drinking water, family size, and fathers' occupation) from a sample of 180 Maya mother-daughter dyads. Mean KH intergenerational difference was calculated and compared for each category of socioeconomic variables and a multiple regression model was used to assess the association between childhood conditions and KH difference.

ETHNICITY AND INCOME IMPACT ON BMI AND STATURE OF SCHOOL CHILDREN LIVING IN URBAN SOUTHERN MEXICO.

Obesity affects quality of life and increases the risk of morbidity and mortality. Mexico, a middle-income country, has a high prevalence of overweight and obesity among urban children. Merida is the most populated and growing city in southern Mexico with a mixed Mayan and non-Maya population.

Height, weight and body mass index by age and sex in children aged 4 to 6 years in Merida, Mexico, as compared to international references after normalization with LMS.

A cross-sectional study was done in 2006-2007 of 458 children (218 boys and 240 girls) aged 4 to 6 years (range 4.00 to 6.99 years) in Merida, Mexico.

The effect of socioeconomic indicators and macronutrient intake rate on body composition in adolescents 12 to 16 years old in Merida, Yucatan.

Intake pattern of macronutrients (protein, lipid, carbohydrate) and socioeconomic status (SES) are major causes of high child and adolescent overweight and obesity prevalences in Mexico. An evaluation was done of the relationship between body mass index (BMI)-based nutritional status and body composition (BC), macronutrient intake rates (MIR) and SES indicators in 127 boys and 156 girls aged 12 to 16 years attending schools in Merida, Mexico. Anthropometric variables included height, weight, and BMI.

Intergenerational influences on the growth of Maya children: The effect of living conditions experienced by mothers and maternal grandmothers during their childhood.

Objectives: To test the hypothesis that living conditions experienced by maternal grandmothers (F1 generation) and mothers (F2 generation) during their childhood are related to height and leg length (LL: height - sitting height) of their 6-to-8 year old children (F3 generation).

Methods: From September 2011 to June 2012 we obtained height and LL, and calculated z-score values of these measurements for 109 triads (F1 , F2 , F3 ) who are Maya living in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico. Multiple regression models were adjusted to examine the relation of anthropometric and intergenerational socioeconomic parameters of F1 (house index and family size during childhood) and F2 (paternal job loss during childhood) with the z-score values of height and LL of F3 .

"You are not fat, you are hermosa": Mexican caregivers share their perceptions about their role supporting their morbidly obese children.

This qualitative study reports the findings from 6 focus groups conducted at a clinic in Southern Mexico with caregivers of morbidly obese children. This study was developed with the purpose of gaining a further understanding of caregivers' perceived role in addressing their children's obesity within the family context and identifying topics that could be considered when providing health care in similar sociocultural environments. We identified that although caregivers acknowledge the role of modifiable factors in obesity prevention and treatment, they held beliefs about determinism in obesity.

Body fatness in relation to physical activity and selected socioeconomic parameters of adolescents aged 15-17 years in Merida, Yucatan.

Background: Increasing rates of overweight and obesity in adolescents are major concerns in many countries, including Mexico.

Objectives: To study anthropometric and body composition characteristics (BCC) and their relations with socioeconomic status (SES), biological history and physical activity (PA) of school-going adolescent boys and girls in the city of Merida, Yucatan, Mexico.

Subjects And Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a sample of 321 adolescents (156 boys and 165 girls) aged 15-17 years from public and private schools in Merida, was taken from a study carried out in 2008-2009.