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Programming of body composition and metabolic function
Marinos Elia
Effect of growth pathways on long-term clinical outcomes - lessons learned from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study
Johan G. Eriksson
Growth stunting as mirrored by the ICP - infancy, childhood and puberty - growth model
J. Karlber
Obesity and health: survival of the fittest?
Michael J. LaMonte and Wm. Cameron Chumlea
Intra-cellular fat accumulation: mechanisms and implications for health
E. L. Thomas and J. D. Bell
Body mass index, body fat, body fat distribution, risk factors and ethnicity
Paul Deurenberg and Mabel Deurenberg-Yap
Are body composition measurements of value in the management of undernutrition?
Rebecca J. Stratton
The body composition toolkit: 'Fit for function'
Steven B. Heymsfield
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 3-6
Marinos Elia
Institute of Human Nutrition, University of Southampton , UK .
Low birth weight is generally associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, impaired glucose tolerance, and blood pressure in adult life. The extent to which these are driven by body composition has been a matter of some debate. Body composition analysis using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and air displacement plethysmography suggest that for the same adult weight and height, the lower-birth-weight group has about 4% more fat than the higher-birth-weight group. Most of the extra fat was found in the trunk, which may contribute to increased risk of cardiovascular disease and type-2 diabetes. The associated relative reduction in fat-free mass and muscle mass in the lower-birth-weight group, in comparison with the higher-birth-weight group, can also help explain the lower observed pre- and post-prandial resting energy expenditure and lower muscle strength, even after controlling for weight and height. Initial evaluation suggests that differences in body composition are not due to body shape. The extent to which 'ethnic' differences in body composition are related to early-life programming remains to be established.
Key words: Body composition, birth weight, lean body mass, muscle, programming, fat distribution, body shape, ethnicity
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 7-10
Johan G. Eriksson
National Public Health Institute, Helsinki , Finland .
Non-optimal growth during fetal life and infancy is often followed by a compensatory and accelerated gain in body weight. This growth pattern seems to precede the development of both type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease (CHD) in adult life. Childhood growth patterns associated with non-communicable diseases in later life are described, based upon findings from the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study. From these findings we know that many adult degenerative diseases are associated with certain patterns of early and childhood growth. Unfortunately, it is not clear what optimal early growth is and how it can be achieved from a long-term health perspective. Furthermore, one has to keep in mind that the same adult disease, eg CHD and type 2 diabetes, may originate from more than one pathway of growth. Most data suggest that the development of many non-communicable diseases involves a number of interactions including genetic ones. Therefore, these diseases can best be understood from a life cycle perspective .
Key words : Type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, growth patterns, fetal growth.
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 11-18
J. Karlberg
Clinical Trials Centre, The University of Hong Kong , Hong Kong SAR, PR China.
About 25% of all children becoming short adults are born small and have no or little catch-up growth postnatally. Another 25% of short adults are born with normal body size but have growth impairment, or faltering, during their first months of life. This growth pattern is the major reason behind shortness in growth-related disorders, and also for children in developing countries. During the first six months, when growth is still influenced by growth factors responsible for fetal growth, infants in developing communities grow some 3 cm less than infants in developed communities. This relatively poor gain does not seem to show any clear association with socio-economic status. However, mean length gain at 6 to 24 months among infants of high socio-economic status in developing countries is the same as among infants from developed communities, while infants of very low socio-economic status fall behind by 6 cm. The poorest infants also have late onset of the childhood phase of growth; no clear risk factor for late childhood onset has as yet been identified and undernutrition does not play any major role. The observed subnormal length gain of 9 cm during the first two years accounts for a large portion (an estimated 75%) of stunted growth in poor communities. Prevention of growth stunting in both developed and developing communities should focus on identification and prevention of late childhood onset. This requires refined methods and understanding of how to diagnose and examine infants with late onset.
Key words: growth stunting, infancy, childhood and puberty, growth model
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 19-25
Michael J. LaMonte 1 and Wm. Cameron Chumlea 2
1 Center for Epidemiological Research, The Cooper Institute, Dallas , TX , USA ; 2 Lifespan Health Research Center , Wright State University , Boonshoft School of Medicine, Dayton , OH , USA .
Sedentary living habits and obesity are associated with premature mortality and increased risk of several chronic diseases. There are major challenges to disentangling the complex multifactorial etiology of obesity, physical activity, and health risks. Available epidemiological evidence indicates that increased physical activity and fitness levels confer important health benefits beyond the affects of overweight and obesity. Everyone should be encouraged to engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on a daily basis. These recommendations will lead to improved health and function and will provide benefits for all adults whether or not weight loss is a goal.
Key words: obesity, health, growth, physical activity
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 27-37
E. L. Thomas and J. D. Bell
Molecular Imaging Group, MRC Clinical Sciences Centre, Hammersmith Hospital , London , UK .
The deposition of fat in lean body mass (ectopic fat) such as liver, skeletal muscle, myocardium, â -cells of the pancreas and kidneys appears to be implicated in the pathophysiology of obesity. Although the mechanisms by which fat accumulates in these depots are not fully understood, current developments in non-invasive methodology together with advances in molecular biology are beginning to shed light on the impact of ectopic fat in the development of insulin resistance and type-2 diabetes. In turn this is leading to the development of new metabolic framework, where ectopic fat accumulation and adipocyte-derived factors play a pivotal role in the development of novel therapeutic strategies.
Key words: Ectopic fat, IMCL; IHCL; obesity; insulin resistance; type-2 diabetes; lipotoxicity; MRI; MRS.
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 39-43
Paul Deurenberg 1 and Mabel Deurenberg-Yap 2
1 Nutrition Consultant , Singapore ; 2 Health Promotion Board , Singapore .
The authors set out the case for taking ethnicity into account when measuring body fat and using the body mass index. Before progress can be made in making realistic assessments there is a need for better definitions in the field. This is not simply a question of defining ethnicity (eg Asian) but basic definitions such as 'normal' percentage body fat.
Key words: Body fat per cent, body mass index, body fat distribution, obesity cut-off points, ethnic differences, risk factors.
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 45-50
Rebecca J. Stratton
Institute of Human Nutrition, School of Medicine , University of Southampton , UK .
Effective management of undernutrition (malnutrition) is essential, as this condition is common and costly. Body composition measures are valuable in the management of all patients in the clinical setting, including those with malnutrition. They can be used as a prognostic tool to predict outcome and response to therapy and are also valuable as markers of the effectiveness of treatment and recovery. It is important to regularly assess body composition clinically as changes in measures of body composition have been variably linked to outcome in different patient groups. In some instances, outcome has been found to be independent of detectable changes in body weight and composition. This could be due to the failure of currently available bedside techniques to detect small changes in body composition, or to assess 'micro' body composition (changes at the tissue and cellular level). Practical difficulties obtaining even simple anthropomorphic measures (such as weight, height), the lack of reliable and accurate equipment (including weighing scales) and portable methods for measuring body composition in the clinical setting need to be considered. Advances in portable methodology (suitable for clinical, bedside use) and the development of ways to measure 'micro' structure (eg at the tissue/cellular level) may uncover new and important body compositional changes that occur during the treatment of malnutrition. The development of such bedside technologies should be a priority if measurements of body composition are to become an integral part of the toolkit for routinely assessing and treating patients in the clinical setting.
Key words: malnutrition; body composition; anthropometry; body weight; screening; outcome assessment; nutritional support
International Journal of Body Composition Research 2006 Vol. 4 No. 1: 51-57
GILBERT B. FORBES MEMORIAL LECTURE
Steven B. Heymsfield
Merck Research Laboratories, Clinical Sciences, Metabolism, Rahway , New Jersey , USA .
Body composition studies have three aspects by which progress in the understanding of body composition measurements can be gauged. They are models, methods and biological variation. Looking back at the career of Dr Gilbert B. Forbes (1915-2003) the author suggests that much more needs still to be done to have good models and methods. The increase in publication numbers suggests that the new International Society of Body Composition Research and International Journal of Body Composition Research can help strengthen the field of body composition by concentrating efforts in a dedicated forum.
Key words: .body composition measurements, body composition models, body composition and function, Gilbert B. Forbes