Fetal nutrition and muscle oxygen supply in childhood.
Fetal undernutrition may increase the risk of insulin resistance syndrome in adult life and low birth weight carries with it the risk of endothelial dysfunction. We studied 59 prepubertal and adolescent children whose birth weight exceeded 2.5 kg. We related their birth weight and ponderal index (PI) (weight/length(3)) at birth to muscle oxygen supply (assessed by near infrared spectroscopy [NIRS]) and to variables associated with increased risk of developing the insulin resistance syndrome (ie, abdominal subcutaneous and visceral fat volumes, percentage body fat, fasting leptin, insulin, and glucose levels). Birth weight was not associated with muscle oxygen supply or any other independent variable measured. In the prepubertal group, there was a significant inverse relation between PI and muscle reoxygenation half-time in both the male (R =.58, P =.03) and female (R =.72, P =.009) groups. This relationship was not present in either the male (R =.03, P =.90) or female (R =.09, P =.75) adolescent groups. In a population in which low birth weight subjects were excluded, low PI at birth is associated with poor muscle oxygen supply in early childhood, but this relationship is not present in adolescence.
Arrowsmith
Fiona
F
Department of Paediatrics, University of Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Ward
Julie
J
Ling
Andrew
A
Rooney
Kieron
K
Baur
Louise
L
Thompson
Campbell
C
D000293:Adolescent; D001682:Biological Availability; D001724:Birth Weight; D001827:Body Height; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000378:metabolism*; D009747:Nutritional Physiological Phenomena / Q000502:physiology*; D010100:Oxygen / Q000378:metabolism; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared; D013997:Time Factors
D010100:Oxygen