Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Jan;7(1):e001622.
doi: 10.1136/bmjpo-2022-001622.

National, longitudinal NASCITA birth cohort study: prevalence of overweight at 12 months of age in children born healthy

Antonio Clavenna  1 , Eleonora Morabito  2 , Massimo Cartabia  3 , Rita Campi  2 , Chiara Liz Pandolfini  2 , Maurizio Bonati  2 ; NASCITA Working Group
Collaborators, Affiliations

National, longitudinal NASCITA birth cohort study: prevalence of overweight at 12 months of age in children born healthy

Antonio Clavenna et al. BMJ Paediatr Open. 2023 Jan.

Abstract

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of overweight at 12 months in an Italian birth cohort and to identify factors related to an increased likelihood of being overweight.

Methods: The Italian NASCITA birth cohort was analysed. Infants were classified as underweight (<5th), normal weight (5-84th) and overweight (≥85th centile) at 12 months of age according to the WHO percentiles of body mass index (BMI) and the prevalence of overweight was estimated. To test the association between the chance of being overweight and parental and newborn characteristics, and infant feeding, healthy newborns (no preterm/low birth weight and with no malformations), with appropriate-for-gestational-age birth weight were selected, and univariate and multivariate analyses were performed.

Results: The prevalence of overweight was 23.5% (95% CI 22.2% to 24.8%) in all cohort members with 12-month data (N=4270), and 23.1% in the appropriate-for-gestational age subsample (N=2835).A big infant appetite (OR 3.92, 95% CI 2.40 to 6.40) and living in southern Italy (OR 1.58, 95% CI 1.29 to 1.94) were the main variables associated with a greater likelihood of being overweight. Breastfeeding practice did not influence the chance of being overweight, but was associated with an increase (exclusive breast feeding for at least 6 months) or a decrease (breast feeding for at least 12 months) in BMI z score at 12 months.

Conclusions: The sociodemographic factors (eg, area of residence, maternal employment status) seem to be the most relevant determinants influencing the chance of being overweight at 12 months. Early interventions, with particular attention to vulnerable families, may be helpful in preventing childhood and adult obesity.

Keywords: epidemiology; growth; obesity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Timeline of well-child visits in the NASCITA (NAscere e creSCere in ITAlia) study.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Flow chart of newborns enrolled in the NASCITA (NAscere e creSCere in ITAlia) birth cohort. *Healthy newborns with appropriate-for-gestational weight attending all the first four well-child visits. AGA, appropriate-for-gestational age.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Styne DM, Arslanian SA, Connor EL, et al. Pediatric obesity-assessment, treatment, and prevention: an endocrine society clinical practice guideline. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2017;102:709–57. 10.1210/jc.2016-2573 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Woo Baidal JA, Locks LM, Cheng ER, et al. Risk factors for childhood obesity in the first 1,000 days: a systematic review. Am J Prev Med 2016;50:761–79. 10.1016/j.amepre.2015.11.012 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Monasta L, Batty GD, Cattaneo A, et al. Early-life determinants of overweight and obesity: a review of systematic reviews. Obes Rev 2010;11:695–708. 10.1111/j.1467-789X.2010.00735.x - DOI - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization . Exclusive breastfeeding for six months: best for babies everywhere. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization, 2011.
    1. Patro-Gołąb B, Zalewski BM, Kołodziej M, et al. Nutritional interventions or exposures in infants and children aged up to 3 years and their effects on subsequent risk of overweight, obesity and body fat: a systematic review of systematic reviews. Obes Rev 2016;17:1245–57. 10.1111/obr.12476 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types