The stepwise assembly of the neonatal virome is modulated by breastfeeding.

The gut of healthy human neonates is usually devoid of viruses at birth, but quickly becomes colonized, which-in some cases-leads to gastrointestinal disorders. Here we show that the assembly of the viral community in neonates takes place in distinct steps. Fluorescent staining of virus-like particles purified from infant meconium or early stool samples shows few or no particles, but by one month of life particle numbers increase to 10 per gram, and these numbers seem to persist throughout life.

Bacterial colonization reprograms the neonatal gut metabolome.

Initial microbial colonization and later succession in the gut of human infants are linked to health and disease later in life. The timing of the appearance of the first gut microbiome, and the consequences for the early life metabolome, are just starting to be defined. Here, we evaluated the gut microbiome, proteome and metabolome in 88 African-American newborns using faecal samples collected in the first few days of life.

Body Mass Index Is a Better Indicator of Body Composition than Weight-for-Length at Age 1 Month.

Objective: To assess whether body mass index (BMI) provides a better assessment of measured adiposity at age 1 month compared with weight-for-length (WFL).

Study Design: Participants were healthy term-born infants in the Infant Growth and Microbiome (n = 146) and the Baby Peas (n = 147) studies. Length, weight, and body composition by air displacement plethysmography were measured at 1 month.

A Social Media Peer Group for Mothers To Prevent Obesity from Infancy: The Grow2Gether Randomized Trial.

Background: Few studies have addressed obesity prevention among low-income families whose infants are at increased obesity risk. We tested a Facebook peer-group intervention for low-income mothers to foster behaviors promoting healthy infant growth.

Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, 87 pregnant women (Medicaid insured, BMI ≥25 kg/m) were randomized to the Grow2Gether intervention or text message appointment reminders.