title: Exposure to violence in childhood is associated with higher body mass index in adolescence.
abstract: To determine whether different types of childhood adversity are associated with body mass index (BMI) in adolescence, we studied 147 adolescents aged 13-17 years, 41% of whom reported exposure to at least one adversity (maltreatment, abuse, peer victimization, or witness to community or domestic violence). We examined associations between adversity type and age- and sex-specific BMI z-scores using linear regression and overweight and obese status using logistic regression. We adjusted for potential socio-demographic, behavioral, and psychological confounders and tested for effect modification by gender. Adolescents with a history of sexual abuse, emotional abuse, or peer victimization did not have significantly different BMI z-scores than those without exposure (p>0.05 for all comparisons). BMI z-scores were higher in adolescents who had experienced physical abuse (β=0.50, 95% CI 0.12-0.91) or witnessed domestic violence (β=0.85, 95% CI 0.30-1.40). Participants who witnessed domestic violence had almost 6 times the odds of being overweight or obese (95% CI: 1.09-30.7), even after adjustment for potential confounders. No gender-by-adversity interactions were found. Exposure to violence in childhood is associated with higher adolescent BMI. This finding highlights the importance of screening for violence in pediatric practice and providing obesity prevention counseling for youth.
authors: Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, USA.
authors: Holly C
authors: HC
authors: Gooding
authors: Clinical Research Center, Boston Children's Hospital, USA.
authors: Carly
authors: C
authors: Milliren
authors: Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, USA; Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard School of Public Health, USA.
authors: S Bryn
authors: SB
authors: Austin
authors: Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, USA; Division of Developmental Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, USA.
authors: Margaret A
authors: MA
authors: Sheridan
authors: Department of Psychology, University of Washington, USA.
authors: Katie A
authors: KA
authors: McLaughlin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017579:Domestic Violence / Q000523:psychology*; D000069581:Exposure to Violence / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000523:psychology*; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Adolescents; Body mass index; Child abuse; Obesity; Violence