Cardiovascular Risk Factor Trajectories Since Childhood and Cognitive Performance in Midlife The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

Background: Cardiovascular risk factors, such as high blood pressure, adverse serum lipids, and elevated body mass index in midlife, may harm cognitive performance. It is important to note that longitudinal accumulation of cardiovascular risk factors since childhood may be associated with cognitive performance already since childhood, but the previous evidence is scarce. We studied the associations of cardiovascular risk factors from childhood to midlife, their accumulation, and midlife cognitive performance. Methods: From 1980, a population-based cohort of 3596 children (3-18 years of age) have been repeatedly followed up for 31 years. Blood pressure, serum lipids, and body mass index were assessed in all follow-ups. Cardiovascular risk factor trajectories from childhood to midlife were identified using latent class growth mixture modeling. Cognitive testing was performed in 2026 participants 34 to 49 years of age using a computerized test. The associations of the cardiovascular risk factor trajectories and cognitive performance were studied for individual cardiovascular risk factors and cardiovascular risk factor accumulation. Results: Consistently high systolic blood pressure (beta=-0.262 SD [95% CI, -0.520 to -0.005]) and serum total cholesterol (beta=-0.214 SD [95% CI, -0.365 to -0.064]) were associated with worse midlife episodic memory and associative learning compared with consistently low values. Obesity since childhood was associated with worse visual processing and sustained attention (beta=-0.407 SD [95% CI, -0.708 to -0.105]) compared with normal weight. An inverse association was observed for the cardiovascular risk factor accumulation with episodic memory and associative learning (P for trend=0.008; 3 cardiovascular risk factors: beta=-0.390 SD [95% CI, -0.691 to -0.088]), with visual processing and sustained attention (P for trend Conclusions: Longitudinal elevated systolic blood pressure, high serum total cholesterol, and obesity from childhood to midlife were inversely associated with midlife cognitive performance. It is important to note that the higher the number of cardiovascular risk factors, the worse was the observed cognitive performance. Therefore, launching preventive strategies against cardiovascular risk factors beginning from childhood might benefit primordial promotion of cognitive health in adulthood.Peer reviewe

Team level identification predicts perceived and actual team performance: longitudinal multilevel analyses with sports teams

Social identification and team performance literatures typically focus on the relationship between individual differences in identification and individual-level performance. By using a longitudinal multilevel approach, involving 369 members of 45 sports teams across England and Italy, we compared how team-level and individual-level variance in social identification together predicted team and individual performance outcomes. As hypothesised, team-level variance in identification significantly predicted subsequent levels of both perceived and actual team performance in cross-lagged analyses. Conversely, individual-level variance in identification did not significantly predict subsequent levels of perceived individual performance. These findings support recent calls for social identity to be considered a multilevel construct and highlight the influence of group-level social identification on group-level processes and outcomes, over and above its individual-level effects

Effects of Randomized Controlled Infancy-Onset Dietary Intervention on Leukocyte Telomere Length—The Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project (STRIP)

Reduced telomere length (TL) is a biological marker of aging. A high inter-individual variation in TL exists already in childhood, which is partly explained by genetics, but also by lifestyle factors. We examined the influence of a 20-year dietary/lifestyle intervention on TL attrition from childhood to early adulthood. The study comprised participants of the longitudinal randomized Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project (STRIP) conducted between 1990 and 2011. Healthy 7-month-old children were randomized to the intervention group (n = 540) receiving dietary counseling mainly focused on dietary fat quality and to the control group (n = 522). Leukocyte TL was measured using the Southern blot method from whole blood samples collected twice: at a mean age of 7.5 and 19.8 years (n = 232; intervention n = 108, control n = 124). Yearly TL attrition rate was calculated. The participants of the intervention group had slower yearly TL attrition rate compared to the controls (intervention: mean = −7.5 bp/year, SD = 24.4 vs. control: mean = −15.0 bp/year, SD = 30.3; age, sex and baseline TL adjusted β = 0.007, SE = 0.004, p = 0.040). The result became stronger after additional adjustments for dietary fat quality and fiber intake, serum lipid and insulin concentrations, systolic blood pressure, physical activity and smoking (β = 0.013, SE = 0.005, p = 0.009). A long-term intervention focused mainly on dietary fat quality may affect the yearly TL attrition rate in healthy children/adolescents

Effects of Randomized Controlled Infancy-Onset Dietary Intervention on Leukocyte Telomere Length—The Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project (STRIP)

Reduced telomere length (TL) is a biological marker of aging. A high inter-individual variation in TL exists already in childhood, which is partly explained by genetics, but also by lifestyle factors. We examined the influence of a 20-year dietary/lifestyle intervention on TL attrition from childhood to early adulthood. The study comprised participants of the longitudinal randomized Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project (STRIP) conducted between 1990 and 2011. Healthy 7-month-old children were randomized to the intervention group (n = 540) receiving dietary counseling mainly focused on dietary fat quality and to the control group (n = 522). Leukocyte TL was measured using the Southern blot method from whole blood samples collected twice: at a mean age of 7.5 and 19.8 years (n = 232; intervention n = 108, control n = 124). Yearly TL attrition rate was calculated. The participants of the intervention group had slower yearly TL attrition rate compared to the controls (intervention: mean = −7.5 bp/year, SD = 24.4 vs. control: mean = −15.0 bp/year, SD = 30.3; age, sex and baseline TL adjusted β = 0.007, SE = 0.004, p = 0.040). The result became stronger after additional adjustments for dietary fat quality and fiber intake, serum lipid and insulin concentrations, systolic blood pressure, physical activity and smoking (β = 0.013, SE = 0.005, p = 0.009). A long-term intervention focused mainly on dietary fat quality may affect the yearly TL attrition rate in healthy children/adolescents

Determinants of left ventricular diastolic function-The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

Decreased left ventricular (LV) diastolic function is associated with increased all-cause mortality and risk for a heart failure. The determinants of LV diastolic function have been mainly studied in elderly populations; however, the origin of LV heart failure may relate to the lifestyle factors acquired during the life course. Therefore, we examined biochemical, physiological, and lifestyle determinants of LV diastolic function in 34-49-year-old participants of the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study (Young Finns Study). In 2011, clinical examination and echocardiography were performed for 1928 participants (880 men and 1048 women; aged 34-49 years). LV diastolic function was primarily defined using E/e-ratio (population mean 4.8, range 2.1-9.0). In a multivariate model, systolic blood pressure (P < 0.005), female sex (P < 0.005), age (P < 0.005), waist circumference (P = 0.024), smoking (P = 0.028), serum alanine aminotransferase (P = 0.032) were directly associated with E/e-ratio, while an inverse association was found for height (P < 0.005). Additionally, a higher E/e-ratio was found in participants with concentric hypertrophy compared to normal cardiac geometry (P < 0.005). Other indicators of the LV diastolic function including E/A-ratio and left atrial volume index showed similarly strong associations with systolic blood pressure and age. In conclusion, we identified systolic blood pressure, waist circumference and smoking as modifiable determinants of the LV diastolic function in the 34-49-year-old participants of the Young Finns Study

Association between Number of Siblings and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Childhood and in Adulthood: The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

Objective: To determine the association of number of siblings on cardiovascular risk factors in childhood and in adulthood.Study design: In total, 3554 participants (51% female) from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study with cardiovascular disease risk factor data at baseline 1980 (age 3-18 years) and 2491 participants with longitudinal risk factor data at the 2011 follow-up. Participants were categorized by number of siblings at baseline (0, 1, or more than 1). Risk factors (body mass index, physical activity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and overweight, and metabolic syndrome) in childhood and in adulthood were used as outcomes. Analyses were adjusted for age and sex.Results: In childhood, participants without siblings had higher body mass index (18.2 kg/m2, 95% CI 18.0-18.3) than those with 1 sibling (17.9 kg/m2, 95% CI 17.8-18.0) or more than 1 sibling (17.8 kg/m2, 95% CI 17.7-17.9). Childhood physical activity index was lower among participants without siblings (SD -0.08, 95% CI -0.16-0.00) compared with participants with 1 sibling (SD 0.06, 95%CI 0.01-0.11) or more than 1 sibling (SD -0.02, 95% CI -0.07-0.03). OR for adulthood hypertension was lower among participants with 1 sibling (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.54-0.98) and more than 1 sibling (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.52-0.97) compared with participants with no siblings. OR for obesity was lower among participants with 1 sibling (OR 0.72, 95% CI 0.54-0.95) and more than 1 sibling (OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.56-1.01) compared with those with no siblings.Conclusions: Children without siblings had poorer cardiovascular risk factor levels in childhood and in adulthood. The number of siblings could help identify individuals at increased risk that might benefit from early intervention.</div

Effects of Randomized Controlled Infancy-Onset Dietary Intervention on Leukocyte Telomere Length - The Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project (STRIP)

Reduced telomere length (TL) is a biological marker of aging. A high inter-individual variation in TL exists already in childhood, which is partly explained by genetics, but also by lifestyle factors. We examined the influence of a 20-year dietary/lifestyle intervention on TL attrition from childhood to early adulthood. The study comprised participants of the longitudinal randomized Special Turku Coronary Risk Factor Intervention Project (STRIP) conducted between 1990 and 2011. Healthy 7-month-old children were randomized to the intervention group (n = 540) receiving dietary counseling mainly focused on dietary fat quality and to the control group (n = 522). Leukocyte TL was measured using the Southern blot method from whole blood samples collected twice: at a mean age of 7.5 and 19.8 years (n = 232; intervention n = 108, control n = 124). Yearly TL attrition rate was calculated. The participants of the intervention group had slower yearly TL attrition rate compared to the controls (intervention: mean = -7.5 bp/year, SD = 24.4 vs. control: mean = -15.0 bp/year, SD = 30.3; age, sex and baseline TL adjusted beta = 0.007, SE = 0.004, p = 0.040). The result became stronger after additional adjustments for dietary fat quality and fiber intake, serum lipid and insulin concentrations, systolic blood pressure, physical activity and smoking (beta = 0.013, SE = 0.005, p = 0.009). A long-term intervention focused mainly on dietary fat quality may affect the yearly TL attrition rate in healthy children/adolescents

Neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage, risk factors, and diabetes from childhood to middle age in the Young Finns Study: a cohort study

Background Neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage has been linked to increased diabetes risk, but little is known about differences in risk factors in childhood and adulthood in those with high and low neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage, or about the association between long-term neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage and incidence of diabetes in adulthood. We used data from the prospective, population-based Young Finns Study to address these questions.Methods We did a nationwide population-based cohort study in Finland using data from The Young Finns Study, which included 3467 participants aged 6-18 years followed up for over 30 years via eight repeated biomedical examinations and linkage to electronic health records. Participants were also linked to national grid data on neighbourhood disadvantage via their residential address from age 6-48 years. We used these data to examine differences in ten risk factors (dietary habits, physical activity, daily smoking, body-mass index, systolic blood pressure, fasting HDL cholesterol, fasting triglycerides, fasting plasma glucose, fasting serum insulin, and homoeostasis model assessment insulin sensitivity) from childhood (6-21 years) to adulthood (22-48 years) among individuals with high (>= 0.5 SD above the national mean) and low (0.5 SD below the national mean) neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage, and the association of cumulative neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage with six cardiometabolic risk factors (obesity, high waist circumference, fatty liver, hypertension, carotid plaque, and left ventricle mass index) and diabetes by middle age (22-48 years). We used logistic and linear regression analyses to assess the effects of neighbourhood disadvantage on cardiometabolic and diabetes risk, controlling for potential confounders (age, sex, and individual socioeconomic disadvantage).Findings We included data for 3002 individuals with risk factor assessment in childhood and adulthood. Of whom, 2048 underwent a clinical examination during the last follow-up at age 33-48 years. Differences in risk factors by neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage at the beginning of follow-up were small, but large differences emerged over the follow-up. High neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage was characterised by decreased fruit and vegetable intake as early as age 6 years, decreased physical activity, and increased prevalence of daily smoking from adolescence (12 years) onwards, and decreased homoeostasis model assessment insulin sensitivity and increased fasting glucose and insulin concentration from early adulthood (27 years; all p<0.03). Individuals consistently exposed to high neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage were more likely to be obese (odds ratio [OR] 1.44, 95% CI 1.01-2.06), hypertensive (1.83, 1.14-2.93), have a fatty liver (1.73, 1.11-2.71), and diabetes (3.71, 1.77-7.75), compared with those who were consistently exposed to low neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage.Interpretation Living in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas can shape health in childhood and adulthood. Neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage is associated with differences in health risks across the life course, including detrimental lifestyle factors from childhood and adolescence onwards and worse glucose metabolism from early adulthood. By middle age, cumulative neighbourhood socioeconomic disadvantage is associated with increased cardiometabolic risk factors and increased incidence of diabetes. Copyright (C) The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd

Exposure to parental smoking and cardiac structure and function in adulthood: the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

Background and aims: The relationship between childhood tobacco smoke exposure and cardiac structure and function in midlife is unclear. We investigated the association between parental smoking with cardiac structure and function in adulthood.Methods: 1250 participants (56.5% female) from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study who had data on parental smoking and/or serum cotinine, a biomarker of exposure to tobacco smoke, at baseline 1980 (age 3-18 years) and echocardiography performed in 2011. Parental smoking hygiene (i.e., smoking in the vicinity of children) was categorized by parental smoking and serum cotinine levels in offspring. Dimensions of the left ventricle, diastolic and systolic function, and cardiac remodeling were used as outcomes. Analyses were adjusted for sex, age, and covariates (blood pressure (BP), serum lipids, body mass index, socioeconomic status, smoking (only in adulthood)) in childhood and adulthood.Results: Parental smoking was not associated with systolic or diastolic function in adulthood. Participants exposed to parental smoking (odds ratio (OR) 1.90, 95%CI 1.23-2.92), hygienic parental smoking (OR 1.74, 95%CI 1.12-2.71), and non-hygienic parental smoking (OR 1.88, 95%CI 1.02-3.45) had higher odds of concentric remodeling (relative wall thickness >85th sex-specific percentile without left ventricular hypertrophy). These associations were attenuated after adjustment for child and adult covariates in the non-hygienic parental smoking group.Conclusions: Exposure to parental smoking in childhood was associated with a higher likelihood of concentric remodeling and thicker left ventricular and interventricular septal walls in midlife, which was not improved by parents who smoked hygienically. Parental smoking was not related to systolic or diastolic function in this relatively young population.</p

A family based tailored counselling to increase non-exercise physical activity in adults with a sedentary job and physical activity in their young children: design and methods of a year-long randomized controlled trial

Background. Epidemiological evidence suggests that decrease in sedentary behaviour is beneficial for health. This family based randomized controlled trial examines whether face-to-face delivered counselling is effective in reducing sedentary time and improving health in adults and increasing moderate-to-vigorous activities in children. Methods. The families are randomized after balancing socioeconomic and environmental factors in the Jyväskylä region, Finland. Inclusion criteria are: healthy men and women with children 3-8 years old, and having an occupation where they self-reportedly sit more than 50% of their work time and children in all-day day-care in kindergarten or in the first grade in primary school. Exclusion criteria are: body mass index > 35 kg/m2, self-reported chronic, long-term diseases, families with pregnant mother at baseline and children with disorders delaying motor development. From both adults and children accelerometer data is collected five times a year in one week periods. In addition, fasting blood samples for whole blood count and serum metabonomics, and diurnal heart rate variability for 3 days are assessed at baseline, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months follow-up from adults. Quadriceps and hamstring muscle activities providing detailed information on muscle inactivity will be used to realize the maximum potential effect of the intervention. Fundamental motor skills from children and body composition from adults will be measured at baseline, and at 6 and 12 months follow-up. Questionnaires of family-influence-model, health and physical activity, and dietary records are assessed. After the baseline measurements the intervention group will receive tailored counselling targeted to decrease sitting time by focusing on commute and work time. The counselling regarding leisure time is especially targeted to encourage toward family physical activities such as visiting playgrounds and non-built environments, where children can get diversified stimulation for play and practice fundamental of motor skills. The counselling will be reinforced during the first 6 months followed by a 6-month maintenance period. Discussion. If shown to be effective, this unique family based intervention to improve lifestyle behaviours in both adults and children can provide translational model for community use. This study can also provide knowledge whether the lifestyle changes are transformed into relevant biomarkers and self-reported health. Trial registration number. ISRCTN: ISRCTN28668090peerReviewe