Time trends in body height according to educational level. A descriptive study from the Tromsø Study 1979-2016

Associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors in women and men: a population-based longitudinal study based on The Tromsø Study 1979-2016

OBJECTIVES

Investigate associations between body height and cardiovascular disease risk factors at several time points in women and men across educational levels in Norway.

DESIGN

Population-based longitudinal study.

SETTING

The Tromsø Study, a population-based study with six surveys conducted between 1979 and 2016 in the municipality of Tromsø, Norway.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES

Body height, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, serum total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides and self-reported educational level.

PARTICIPANTS

23 512 women and men (49.6% women), aged 30-49 years at first participation in The Tromsø Study. Participants who attended more than one survey contributed with repeated measurements for blood pressure and lipids.Blood pressure and lipid values were used as dependent variables in sex specific age-adjusted linear mixed models. Body height at first participation was the independent variable, while survey time point and educational level were used as covariates.

RESULTS

Overall effect models showed inverse associations between body height and systolic blood pressure (reg. coefficients: -0.88 (95% CI -1.1, -0.6)), diastolic blood pressure (-0.41 (95% CI -0.6, -0.3)), serum total cholesterol (-0.12 (95% CI -0.1, -0.1)) and triglycerides (-0.06 (95% CI -0.1, -0.0)) in women. Inverse associations between body height and lipid variables were also observed in men (serum total cholesterol: -0.12 (95% CI -0.1, -0.1) triglycerides -0.05 (95% CI -0.1, -0.0)). Regression coefficients for associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors varied across surveys. Overall, there were no associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors based on educational level and survey.

CONCLUSION

The overall effect models support previous findings of inverse associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors in women, and inverse associations between body height and lipids in men. Our study showed varied degrees of associations between body height and cardiovascular risk factors at different time points in Norway.

Dynamic influence of maternal education on height among Chinese children aged 0-18 years

Background

Maternal education is one of key factors affecting nurturing environment which significantly impacts children's height levels throughout their developmental stages. However, the influence of maternal education on children's height is less studied. This study aims to investigate the dynamic influence of maternal education on children's height among Chinese children aged 0-18 years.

Methods

Children undergoing health examinations from January 2021 to September 2023 were included in this study. Clinical information including height, weight, maternal pregnancy history, blood specimens for bone metabolism-related indicators and maternal education level was collected. Children's height was categorized into 14 groups based on age and gender percentiles, following WHO 2006 growth standards. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), linear regression, chi-square test and Fisher's exact test were applied for data analysis.

Results

A total of 6269 samples were collected, including 3654 males and 2615 females, with an average age of 8.38 (3.97) for males and 7.89 (3.55) for females. Significant correlations between maternal education level, birth weight, birth order, weight percentile, vitamin D, serum phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase levels, and children's height were identified. Birth weight's influence on height varied across age groups. Compared with normal birth weight children, low birth weight children exhibited catch-up growth within the first 6 years and a subsequent gradual widening of the height gap from 6 to 18 years old. Remarkably, the impact of maternal education on height became more pronounced among children above 3-6 years old, which can mitigate the effect of low birth weight on height.

Conclusion

We found that weight percentile, birth weight, birth order, bone marker levels, and maternal education level have significant effect on height. Maternal education attenuates the impact of low birth weight on height. The findings indicated that maternal education plays a consistent and critical role in promoting robust and healthy growth.

Secular trends and regional pattern in body height of Austrian conscripts born between 1961 and 2002

The human growth process is influenced not only by genetic factors but also by environmental factors. Therefore, regional differences in mean body heights may exist within a population or a state. In the present study, we described and evaluated the regional trends in mean body heights in the nine Austrian provinces over a period spanning more than four decades. Body height data of 1734569 male conscripts born in Austria with Austrian citizenship between 1961 and 2002 were anonymized and analyzed. From 1961 to 2002 birth cohorts, an overall increase in the mean body height of Austrian recruits was observed, although regional differences were evident. Regions with shorter body heights in the 1961-1963 birth cohorts showed a particularly pronounced increase in mean body heights. Meanwhile, the course of body height growth in the capital city, Vienna, was striking, where the highest body heights were documented for the 1961-1963 birth cohorts. In Vienna, mean body heights continued to decline until the 1984 birth cohort and increased again from the 1988 birth cohorts. In addition to economic factors, increased stress factors in an urban environment and a form of urban penalty are discussed as causes.

Secular trends in height, weight, and body mass index in the context of economic and political transformations in Russia from 1885 to 2021

OBJECTIVES

To study and analyze the impact of socio-economic factors on secular changes in height, weight, and body mass index (BMI) among Moscow's youth over the time interval from the late 19th-early 20th century to the present.

METHODS

Anthropometric data, including height, weight, and BMI, were collected through surveys conducted on youths aged 17-20 years in Moscow from the 1880s for males and from the 1920s for females to the present. The dataset includes information on 6434 individuals surveyed from 2000 to 2019, as well as previously published mean values. Economic development indicators, such as gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, monthly average income per capita, and the Gini coefficient, were examined to analyze the association between secular trends in body size and socio-economic conditions.

RESULTS

A positive secular trend in height and weight has been observed among Moscow's youth from the early 20th century to the present. Substantial increases in height occurred during the second half of the previous century, stabilizing in the 2000s. Over the analyzed period, both average body weight and BMI values showed a consistent rise. The pattern for BMI exhibited a U-shaped trend, with a decline from the 1970s to the mid-1990s, followed by a subsequent increase. Strong correlations were found between the secular changes in body size among Moscow's youth and temporal fluctuations in key socio-economic indicators, including GDP per capita, monthly average income per capita, and the Gini coefficient.

CONCLUSION

The study demonstrates the significant influence of socio-economic conditions on intergenerational changes in body size, as evidenced by the positive secular trend in physique indicators (height, weight, and BMI) among Moscow's youth.

Comparison of Motion Grading in 1,000 Patients by First- and Second-Generation HR-pQCT: A Propensity Score Matched Cohort Study

In-vivo bone microstructure measured by high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) is gaining importance in research and clinical practice. Second-generation HR-pQCT (XCT2) shows improved image quality and shorter measurement duration compared to the first generation (XCT1). Predicting and understanding the occurrence of motion artifacts is crucial for clinical practice. We retrospectively analyzed data from HR-pQCT measurements at the distal radius and tibia of 1,000 patients (aged 20 to 89) evenly distributed between both generations of HR-pQCT. Motion artifacts were graded between 1 (no motion) and 5 (severe motion), with grades greater 3 considered unusable. Additionally, baseline characteristics and patients' muscle performance and balance were measured. Various group comparisons between the two generations of HR-pQCT and regression analyses between patient characteristics and motion grading were performed. The study groups of XCT1 and XCT2 did not differ by age (XCT1: 64.9 vs. XCT2: 63.8 years, p = 0.136), sex (both 74.5% females, p > 0.999), or BMI (both 24.2 kg/m2, p = 0.911) after propensity score matching. XCT2 scans exhibited significantly lower motion grading in both extremities compared to XCT1 (Radius: p < 0.001; Tibia: p = 0.002). In XCT2 motion-corrupted scans were more than halved at the radius (XCT1: 35.3% vs. XCT2: 15.5%, p < 0.001), and at the tibia the frequency of best image quality scans was increased (XCT1: 50.2% vs. XCT2: 63.7%, p < 0.001). The strongest independent predictor for motion-corrupted images is the occurrence of high motion grading at the other scanning site during the same consultation. The association between high motion grading in one scan and a corresponding high motion grading in another scan within the same session suggests a non-resting patient. Additionally, aged, female, and patients with smaller stature tend towards higher motion grading, requiring special attention to a correct extremity fixation.