Modifiable factors influencing attention performance in healthy children: insights from a comprehensive school nutrition study.

Background: There is inconclusive evidence for the effects of various leisure activities on attention performance in children. The literature reports inconsistent associations between activities such as physical activities or media use. To date, no study has thoroughly examined the various factors influencing attentional performance in a larger cohort of healthy children.

Seasonal variability in body mass index, waist circumference, and skinfolds in Norwegian children.

Objectives: Studies have shown that children develop a higher body weight during summer months. This has been demonstrated repeatedly using the body mass index (BMI), but the effect of season on other weight-related anthropometric measurements is still unclear.

Methods: Measurements of height, weight, waist circumference (WC), triceps, and subscapular skinfolds (TSF and SSF), collected from September till May in a cross-sectional sample of 4-16-year-old children and adolescents (n = 4525) from the Bergen Growth Study 1 (BGS1).

Epigenome-Wide Meta-analysis Reveals Associations Between Dietary Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load and DNA Methylation in Children and Adolescents of Different Body Sizes.

Objective: Dietary glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) are associated with cardiometabolic health in children and adolescents, with potential distinct effects in people with increased BMI. DNA methylation (DNAm) may mediate these effects. Thus, we conducted meta-analyses of epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) between dietary GI and GL and blood DNAm of children and adolescents.

Fasting indices of glucose-insulin-metabolism across life span and prediction of glycemic deterioration in children with obesity from new diagnostic cut-offs.

Background: Fasting indices of glucose-insulin-metabolism are an easy and affordable tool to assess insulin resistance. We aimed to establish reference ranges for fasting insulin indices that reflect age-dependent variation over the entire life span and subsequently test their clinical application regarding the prediction of glycemic deterioration in children.

Methods: We calculated age- and puberty-dependent reference values for HOMA-IR, HOMA2-IR, HOMA-β, McAuley index, fasting insulin, and fasting glucose from 6994 observations of 5512 non-obese healthy subjects aged 5-80 years.

Dietary fiber and growth, iron status and bowel function in children 0-5 years old: a systematic review.

Background: While dietary fiber intake is low in many children, the current trend to plant-based diets is associated with higher fiber intake in children raised on these diets. As older reports indicate that diets providing high fiber intake in children 0-5 years may affect growth, iron status and bowel function, we summarized the available evidence in this systematic review.

Objective: To identify, critically appraise, and synthesize evidence on the effect of high fiber intake on growth, iron and bowel function in children 0-5 years, with relevance to the Nordic and Baltic countries.

Nuts and seeds consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and their risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: We aimed to systematically review studies and evaluate the strength of the evidence on nuts/seeds consumption and cardiometabolic diseases and their risk factors among adults.

Methods: A protocol was pre-registered in PROSPERO (CRD42021270554). We searched MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and Scopus up to September 20, 2021 for prospective cohort studies and ≥12-week randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

The Effect of Regular Consumption of Reformulated Breads on Glycemic Control: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials.

Bread is a major source of grain-derived carbohydrates worldwide. High intakes of refined grains, low in dietary fiber and high in glycemic index, are linked with increased risk for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and other chronic diseases. Hence, improvements in the composition of bread could influence population health.

Associations of and expression in adipose tissue cells with obesity-related alterations in corresponding circulating levels and adipose tissue function in children.

Components of the growth hormone (GH) axis, such as insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), IGF-1 binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3), GH receptor (GHR) and GH-binding protein (GHBP), regulate growth and metabolic pathways. Here, we asked if serum levels of these factors are altered with overweight/obesity and if this is related to adipose tissue (AT) expression and/or increased fat mass. Furthermore, we hypothesized that expression of and is associated with AT function.

Sixteen-week multicentre randomised controlled trial to study the effect of the consumption of an oat beta-glucan-enriched bread versus a whole-grain wheat bread on glycaemic control among persons with pre-diabetes: a study protocol of the CarbHealth study.

Introduction: In 2012, the estimated global prevalence of pre-diabetes was 280 million, and the prevalence is expected to rise to 400 million by 2030. Oat-based foods are a good source of beta-glucans, which have been shown to lower postprandial blood glucose. Studies to evaluate the effectiveness of the long-term intake of beta-glucan-enriched bread as part of a habitual diet among individuals with pre-diabetes are needed.

Purchasing Behavior, Setting, Pricing, Family: Determinants of School Lunch Participation.

Despite growing school lunch availability in Germany, its utilization is still low, and students resort to unhealthy alternatives. We investigated predictors of school lunch participation and reasons for nonparticipation in 1215 schoolchildren. Children reported meal habits, parents provided family-related information (like socioeconomic status), and anthropometry was conducted on-site in schools.

Changes in diet from pregnancy to one year after birth: a longitudinal study.

Background: Pregnancy and the first year after giving birth are marked by physiological and psychological changes. While it is well known that energy requirements change during this time, the question of how a woman's diet actually changes from pregnancy until 1 year postpartum has been left virtually unexplored. The present study employs a longitudinal design to investigate these changes.

Composition and Culture of Eating (CoCu) pregnancy: a new short questionnaire to evaluate diet composition and culture of eating during pregnancy.

Objective: The project aimed to validate a short questionnaire (CoCu pregnancy - Composition and Culture of Eating during pregnancy) and to investigate associations with age and socio-economic status (SES).

Design: The questionnaire was developed according to the validated CoCu for children and adolescents containing a diet composition (fourteen items) and a culture of eating part (six items). A Nutritional Health Score (NHS) was calculated based on diet composition (-120 and +120, with higher scores indicating healthier diets).

And yet Again: Having Breakfast Is Positively Associated with Lower BMI and Healthier General Eating Behavior in Schoolchildren.

Given the high prevalence of childhood overweight, school-based programs aiming at nutritional behavior may be a good starting point for community-based interventions. Therefore, we investigated associations between school-related meal patterns and weight status in 1215 schoolchildren. Anthropometry was performed on-site in schools.

Parent-child agreement in different domains of child behavior and health.

Aim: The present study aimed to investigate and compare parent-child agreement in different domains of child health and behavior.

Methods: Data were collected between 2011 and 2019 within the framework of the LIFE Child study (Germany). Different subgroups of 10- to 12-year-old children and their parents (n (max) = 692) completed questionnaires on several health behaviors (diet, media use, physical activity, sleep), parameters of health (behavioral strengths and difficulties, psychosomatic complaints), and school grades.

CoCu: A new short questionnaire to evaluate diet composition and culture of eating in children and adolescents.

Background & Aims: The aim of this project was to develop and validate a short questionnaire (titled CoCu - Composition and Culture of Eating) for assessing the composition of the diets of children and adolescents, and their culture of eating. We also investigated whether what and how children eat is associated with their age, gender, and social background.

Methods: The "diet composition" part of the developed questionnaire contains 14 questions about the number of portions of different food products the subject child eats per week or per day.

Acceleration of BMI in Early Childhood and Risk of Sustained Obesity.

Background: The dynamics of body-mass index (BMI) in children from birth to adolescence are unclear, and whether susceptibility for the development of sustained obesity occurs at a specific age in children is important to determine.

Methods: To assess the age at onset of obesity, we performed prospective and retrospective analyses of the course of BMI over time in a population-based sample of 51,505 children for whom sequential anthropometric data were available during childhood (0 to 14 years of age) and adolescence (15 to 18 years of age). In addition, we assessed the dynamics of annual BMI increments, defined as the change in BMI standard-deviation score per year, during childhood in 34,196 children.

[Neighbourhood deprivation and community nutrition environment: associations between the social and built environment and food availability].

Objective: Eating habits are influenced by individual socioeconomic status (SES). As the association between neighbourhood characteristics and food availability is still unclear, we investigated the community nutrition environment in different neighbourhoods.

Methods: Using official data of the city of Leipzig, we selected three neighbourhoods which differed in terms of their social (2 deprived vs.

Challenges in doing multi-disciplinary health promotion research in Germany.

Health problems such as obesity are increasingly addressed by complex intervention programmes which operate at multiple levels of influence (e.g. families, schools, neighbourhoods) involving partners from various academic, professional and cultural backgrounds.

Further stabilization and even decrease in the prevalence rates of overweight and obesity in German children and adolescents from 2005 to 2015: a cross-sectional and trend analysis.

Objective: Recently several industrialized countries reported a stabilization or even a decrease in childhood overweight and obesity prevalence rates. In Germany, this trend started in 2004. The present study therefore aimed to evaluate whether this trend has continued or even leads in a clear direction.

Novel Insights in the Metabolic Syndrome in Childhood and Adolescence.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is recognized as an escalating major health risk in adults as well as in children and adolescents. Its prevalence ranges from 6 to 39% depending on the applied definition criteria. To date, there is no consensus on a MetS definition for children and adolescents.

Concordance of bioactive vs. total immunoreactive serum leptin levels in children with severe early onset obesity.

Context: Leptin secreted from adipose tissue signals peripheral energy status to the brain. Monogenic leptin deficiency results in severe early onset obesity with hyperphagia. Recently, a similar phenotype of inactivating leptin mutations but with preserved immunoreactivity and hence normal circulating immunoreactive leptin has been reported.

Diabetes screening in overweight and obese children and adolescents: choosing the right test.

Unlabelled: Type 2 diabetes can occur without any symptoms, and health problems associated with the disease are serious. Screening tests allowing an early diagnosis are desirable. However, optimal screening tests for diabetes in obese youth are discussed controversially.

Low association between fasting and OGTT stimulated glucose levels with HbA1c in overweight children and adolescents.

Background: Diabetes and prediabetes are defined based on different methods such as fasting glucose, glucose at 2-hour in oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), and glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). These parameters probably describe different deteriorations in glucose metabolism limiting the exchange between each other in definitions of diabetes.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between OGTT and HbA1c in overweight and obese children and adolescents living in Germany.