We leveraged information solicited from three generations (grandparents, mothers, and grandchildr... more We leveraged information solicited from three generations (grandparents, mothers, and grandchildren) to examine the association between mothers’ childhood SES (based on grandparents’ educational attainment) and their children’s epigenetic age and whether the association was mediated by mothers’ life course socioeconomic and health-related factors. Mothers were recruited to the NHLBI Growth and Health Study when they were 9 or 10 and followed for ten consecutive years (1987-1998). Grandparents reported their highest education during the baseline interviews. Mothers were then re-contacted three decades later (ages 37-42) to participate in the National Growth and Health Study (NGHS), and health information of their youngest children (i.e., grandchildren; N = 241, ages 2-17) were collected, including their saliva samples to calculate epigenetic age. Two epigenetic ages were estimated (Horvath and Hannum), and DNA methylation age accelerations (DNAmAAs) were calculated using residuals from regressing chronologic age on each epigenetic age metrics. Mothers’ life course socioeconomic and health-related mediators included childhood BMI trajectories (from age 9 to 19), highest education level, adult health behavior, and adult c-reactive protein (CRP). Adjusted for age and sex, grandchildren with college degree grandparents showed significantly slower Horvath’s DNAmAA than those with no college degree. The association between grandparent’s education level and grandchildren’s DNAmAA was partially mediated by mothers’ life course socioeconomic and health-related factors, especially mothers’ education, health behavior, and CRP. Grandparents’ educational attainment is a critical socioeconomic context of mothers’ early rearing, and it might have a long-lasting impact on their grandchildren’s epigenetic marker.
The purpose of the current study was to test the longitudinal association between disordered-eati... more The purpose of the current study was to test the longitudinal association between disordered-eating symptoms (body dissatisfaction, drive for thinness, and bulimia) in adolescence (ages 12, 14, 16, 18, 19) and adulthood (age 40) in a sample of 883 white and Black women. We also investigated moderation by race. Adolescent symptoms at each time point significantly predicted adulthood symptoms for the Body Dissatisfaction and Drive for Thinness subscales for both Black and white women. Bulimia symptoms in adolescence predicted symptoms in adulthood; however, the effect was largely driven by white women. Although moderation was nonsignificant, among white women, bulimia symptoms at all adolescent time points predicted adulthood bulimia, but among Black women, only symptoms at ages 18 and 19 were predictive of adulthood bulimia. Results suggest that both Black and white women are susceptible to disordered eating and that symptoms emerging in adolescence can potentially follow women into midlife.
Background The current study examined if early adversity was associated with accelerated biologic... more Background The current study examined if early adversity was associated with accelerated biological aging, and if effects were mediated by the timing of puberty. Methods In early mid-life, 187 Black and 198 White (Mage = 39.4, s.d.age = 1.2) women reported on early abuse and age at first menstruation (menarche). Women provided saliva and blood to assess epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein. Using structural equation modeling, we created a latent variable of biological aging using epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein as indicators, and a latent variable of early abuse using indicators of abuse/threat events before age 13, physical abuse, and sexual abuse. We estimated the indirect effects of early abuse and of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche. Race was used as a proxy for adversity in the form of systemic racism. Results There was an indirect effect of early adversity on accelerated aging through age at menarche (b = 0.19, 95% CI 0.03–0.44), in that women who experienced more adversity were younger at menarche, which was associated with greater accelerated aging. There was also an indirect effect of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche (b = 0.25, 95% CI 0.04–0.52), in that Black women were younger at menarche, which led to greater accelerated aging. Conclusions Early abuse and being Black in the USA may both induce a phenotype of accelerated aging. Early adversity may begin to accelerate aging during childhood, in the form of early pubertal timing.
ObjectiveThis study examined the association of adolescent BMI trajectory with adult metabolic sy... more ObjectiveThis study examined the association of adolescent BMI trajectory with adult metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) and with intergenerational obesity.MethodsThis study used data from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Growth and Health Study (1987–1997). Data from the 20‐year follow‐up (2016–2019) study were included from the original participants (N = 624) and their children (N = 645). Adolescent BMI trajectories were identified using latent trajectory modeling. Mediation analysis using logistic regression models was performed to estimate confounder‐adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% CI between adolescent BMI trajectory and adult MetSyn. Using similar methods, the association between BMI trajectory and offspring obesity was examined.ResultsLatent trajectory modeling identified four patterns: “weight loss then gain” (N = 62); “persistently normal” (N = 374); “persistently high BMI” (N = 127); and “weight gain then loss” (N = 61). Women who had a persistently high BMI trajectory had twice the odds of having children who met the definition for obesity compared with the persistently normal group, adjusting for adult BMI (OR: 2.76; 95% CI: 1.39–5.46). None of the trajectory groups was associated with adult MetSyn compared with the persistently normal group.ConclusionsIntermittent adolescent obesity may not confer MetSyn risk during adulthood. However, maternal adolescent BMI trajectories that are persistently high may increase the odds of intergenerational obesity among offspring.
Objective: To examine associations between household food insecurity and children’s physical acti... more Objective: To examine associations between household food insecurity and children’s physical activity and sedentary behaviours. Design: Secondary analysis was conducted on the Healthy Communities Study, an observational study from 2013 to 2015. Household food insecurity was assessed by two items from the US Department of Agriculture’s 18-item US Household Food Security Survey Module. Physical activity was measured using the 7-d Physical Activity Behaviour Recall instrument. Data were analysed using multilevel statistical modelling. Setting: A total of 130 communities in the USA. Participants: In sum, 5138 US children aged 4–15 years. Results: No associations were found for the relationship between household food insecurity and child physical activity. A significant interaction between household food insecurity and child sex for sedentary behaviours was observed (P = 0·03). Conclusions: Additional research capturing a more detailed assessment of children’s experiences of food insecur...
We leveraged information solicited from three generations (grandparents, mothers, and grandchildr... more We leveraged information solicited from three generations (grandparents, mothers, and grandchildren) to examine the association between mothers’ childhood SES (based on grandparents’ educational attainment) and their children’s epigenetic age and whether the association was mediated by mothers’ life course socioeconomic and health-related factors. Mothers were recruited to the NHLBI Growth and Health Study when they were 9 or 10 and followed for ten consecutive years (1987-1998). Grandparents reported their highest education during the baseline interviews. Mothers were then re-contacted three decades later (ages 37-42) to participate in the National Growth and Health Study (NGHS), and health information of their youngest children (i.e., grandchildren; N = 241, ages 2-17) were collected, including their saliva samples to calculate epigenetic age. Two epigenetic ages were estimated (Horvath and Hannum), and DNA methylation age accelerations (DNAmAAs) were calculated using residuals from regressing chronologic age on each epigenetic age metrics. Mothers’ life course socioeconomic and health-related mediators included childhood BMI trajectories (from age 9 to 19), highest education level, adult health behavior, and adult c-reactive protein (CRP). Adjusted for age and sex, grandchildren with college degree grandparents showed significantly slower Horvath’s DNAmAA than those with no college degree. The association between grandparent’s education level and grandchildren’s DNAmAA was partially mediated by mothers’ life course socioeconomic and health-related factors, especially mothers’ education, health behavior, and CRP. Grandparents’ educational attainment is a critical socioeconomic context of mothers’ early rearing, and it might have a long-lasting impact on their grandchildren’s epigenetic marker.
The purpose of the current study was to test the longitudinal association between disordered-eati... more The purpose of the current study was to test the longitudinal association between disordered-eating symptoms (body dissatisfaction, drive for thinness, and bulimia) in adolescence (ages 12, 14, 16, 18, 19) and adulthood (age 40) in a sample of 883 white and Black women. We also investigated moderation by race. Adolescent symptoms at each time point significantly predicted adulthood symptoms for the Body Dissatisfaction and Drive for Thinness subscales for both Black and white women. Bulimia symptoms in adolescence predicted symptoms in adulthood; however, the effect was largely driven by white women. Although moderation was nonsignificant, among white women, bulimia symptoms at all adolescent time points predicted adulthood bulimia, but among Black women, only symptoms at ages 18 and 19 were predictive of adulthood bulimia. Results suggest that both Black and white women are susceptible to disordered eating and that symptoms emerging in adolescence can potentially follow women into midlife.
Background The current study examined if early adversity was associated with accelerated biologic... more Background The current study examined if early adversity was associated with accelerated biological aging, and if effects were mediated by the timing of puberty. Methods In early mid-life, 187 Black and 198 White (Mage = 39.4, s.d.age = 1.2) women reported on early abuse and age at first menstruation (menarche). Women provided saliva and blood to assess epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein. Using structural equation modeling, we created a latent variable of biological aging using epigenetic aging, telomere length, and C-reactive protein as indicators, and a latent variable of early abuse using indicators of abuse/threat events before age 13, physical abuse, and sexual abuse. We estimated the indirect effects of early abuse and of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche. Race was used as a proxy for adversity in the form of systemic racism. Results There was an indirect effect of early adversity on accelerated aging through age at menarche (b = 0.19, 95% CI 0.03–0.44), in that women who experienced more adversity were younger at menarche, which was associated with greater accelerated aging. There was also an indirect effect of race on accelerated aging through age at menarche (b = 0.25, 95% CI 0.04–0.52), in that Black women were younger at menarche, which led to greater accelerated aging. Conclusions Early abuse and being Black in the USA may both induce a phenotype of accelerated aging. Early adversity may begin to accelerate aging during childhood, in the form of early pubertal timing.
ObjectiveThis study examined the association of adolescent BMI trajectory with adult metabolic sy... more ObjectiveThis study examined the association of adolescent BMI trajectory with adult metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) and with intergenerational obesity.MethodsThis study used data from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Growth and Health Study (1987–1997). Data from the 20‐year follow‐up (2016–2019) study were included from the original participants (N = 624) and their children (N = 645). Adolescent BMI trajectories were identified using latent trajectory modeling. Mediation analysis using logistic regression models was performed to estimate confounder‐adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% CI between adolescent BMI trajectory and adult MetSyn. Using similar methods, the association between BMI trajectory and offspring obesity was examined.ResultsLatent trajectory modeling identified four patterns: “weight loss then gain” (N = 62); “persistently normal” (N = 374); “persistently high BMI” (N = 127); and “weight gain then loss” (N = 61). Women who had a persistently high BMI trajectory had twice the odds of having children who met the definition for obesity compared with the persistently normal group, adjusting for adult BMI (OR: 2.76; 95% CI: 1.39–5.46). None of the trajectory groups was associated with adult MetSyn compared with the persistently normal group.ConclusionsIntermittent adolescent obesity may not confer MetSyn risk during adulthood. However, maternal adolescent BMI trajectories that are persistently high may increase the odds of intergenerational obesity among offspring.
Objective: To examine associations between household food insecurity and children’s physical acti... more Objective: To examine associations between household food insecurity and children’s physical activity and sedentary behaviours. Design: Secondary analysis was conducted on the Healthy Communities Study, an observational study from 2013 to 2015. Household food insecurity was assessed by two items from the US Department of Agriculture’s 18-item US Household Food Security Survey Module. Physical activity was measured using the 7-d Physical Activity Behaviour Recall instrument. Data were analysed using multilevel statistical modelling. Setting: A total of 130 communities in the USA. Participants: In sum, 5138 US children aged 4–15 years. Results: No associations were found for the relationship between household food insecurity and child physical activity. A significant interaction between household food insecurity and child sex for sedentary behaviours was observed (P = 0·03). Conclusions: Additional research capturing a more detailed assessment of children’s experiences of food insecur...
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Papers by Barbara Laraia