Exposure to secondhand smoke, exclusive breastfeeding and infant adiposity at age 5ￂ months in the Healthy Start study

• Published in: Pediatric obesity Vol. 12; no. S1; p. 111
• Main Authors: Moore, B F, Sauder, K A, Starling, A P, Ringham, B M, Glueck, D H, Dabelea, D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.08.2017
• Subjects: Age; Breastfeeding & lactation; Childrens health; Health care; Obesity; Pediatrics; Tobacco smoke
• DOI: 10.1111/ijpo.12233
• ISSN: 2047-6302

Summary Background Infant adiposity may be influenced by several environmental risk factors, but few studies have explored these interactions. Objective To examine the interaction between exposure to secondhand smoke and breastfeeding exclusivity on adiposity at age 5 months. Methods We studied 813 mother-offspring pairs from the longitudinal Healthy Start study. Fat mass and fat-free mass were measured by air displacement plethysmography. Linear regression analyses were used to estimate the association between household smokers (none, any) with fat mass, fat-free mass, percent fat mass, weight-for-age z-score, weight-for-length z-score and BMI-for-age z-score as separate outcomes. Interaction terms between household smokers and breastfeeding exclusivity (<5 months, ≥5 months) were added to separate models. Results The combination of exposure to secondhand smoke and a lack of exclusive breastfeeding was associated with increased adiposity at age 5 months. For example, within the not exclusively breastfed strata, exposure to secondhand smoke was associated with increased fat mass (0.1 kg; 95% CI: 0.0-0.2; P = 0.05). Conversely, within the exclusively breastfed strata, there was virtually no difference in fat mass between exposed and non-exposed infants (coefficient: -0.1; 95% CI: -0.3-0.1; P = 0.25). Conclusions Our findings may inform new public health strategies with potential relevance for both smoking cessation and obesity prevention.