TY - JOUR
T1 - Mental Health in Early Childhood and Changes in Cardiometabolic Dysregulation by Preadolescence
AU - Qureshi, Farah
AU - Derks, Ivonne P.M.
AU - Jaddoe, Vincent W.V.
AU - Williams, Michelle A.
AU - Koenen, Karestan C.
AU - Tiemeier, Henning
AU - Kubzansky, Laura D.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 by the American Psychosomatic Societ.
PY - 2021/4/1
Y1 - 2021/4/1
N2 - Objective Poor mental health in childhood is associated with a greater risk of cardiometabolic disease in adulthood, but less is known about when these associations begin to emerge. This study tests whether poor mental health (indexed by emotional and behavioral problems) in early childhood predicts increases in cardiometabolic dysregulation over 4 years of follow-up. Methods Data are from 4327 participants in the Generation R Study. Problem behaviors were reported by mothers using the Child Behavior Checklist at age 6 years. Repeated measurements of six cardiometabolic parameters were collected at ages 6 and 10 years: high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, systolic and diastolic blood pressures, C-reactive protein, and body mass index. Standardized measures were used to create continuous cardiometabolic dysregulation scores at ages 6 and 10 years. Change in dysregulation was defined as the difference in dysregulation scores over time. Cross-sectional and prospective associations were tested using linear regression, sequentially adjusting for relevant confounders. Additional analyses examined whether prospective relationships were robust to adjustment for baseline levels of dysregulation. Results There was no association between child problem behaviors and cardiometabolic dysregulation at age 6 years. However, higher levels of problem behaviors predicted increases in cardiometabolic dysregulation (β = 0.12, 95% confidence interval = 0.00-0.23) from ages 6 to 10 years. Conclusions Worse child mental health may be associated with increases in cardiometabolic dysregulation by preadolescence. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that adverse physiologic effects of psychological distress identified in adult populations may be observed as early as childhood.
AB - Objective Poor mental health in childhood is associated with a greater risk of cardiometabolic disease in adulthood, but less is known about when these associations begin to emerge. This study tests whether poor mental health (indexed by emotional and behavioral problems) in early childhood predicts increases in cardiometabolic dysregulation over 4 years of follow-up. Methods Data are from 4327 participants in the Generation R Study. Problem behaviors were reported by mothers using the Child Behavior Checklist at age 6 years. Repeated measurements of six cardiometabolic parameters were collected at ages 6 and 10 years: high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, systolic and diastolic blood pressures, C-reactive protein, and body mass index. Standardized measures were used to create continuous cardiometabolic dysregulation scores at ages 6 and 10 years. Change in dysregulation was defined as the difference in dysregulation scores over time. Cross-sectional and prospective associations were tested using linear regression, sequentially adjusting for relevant confounders. Additional analyses examined whether prospective relationships were robust to adjustment for baseline levels of dysregulation. Results There was no association between child problem behaviors and cardiometabolic dysregulation at age 6 years. However, higher levels of problem behaviors predicted increases in cardiometabolic dysregulation (β = 0.12, 95% confidence interval = 0.00-0.23) from ages 6 to 10 years. Conclusions Worse child mental health may be associated with increases in cardiometabolic dysregulation by preadolescence. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that adverse physiologic effects of psychological distress identified in adult populations may be observed as early as childhood.
KW - cardiometabolic risk
KW - child mental health
KW - childhood origins of disease
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U2 - 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000927
DO - 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000927
M3 - Article
C2 - 33657082
AN - SCOPUS:85103800310
SN - 0033-3174
VL - 83
SP - 256
EP - 264
JO - Psychosomatic medicine
JF - Psychosomatic medicine
IS - 3
ER -