Parental obesity increases the risk of obesity developing in their offspring. The exact cause of this is not known, but it is likely that both genetic and environmental components play a part. Genetic factors have been identified, but socioeconomic status and lifestyle are also known to be strongly influential. Correlations between the body mass index (BMI) of parents and their children have been reported between 0.15 and 0.25 in one study of the British population, suggesting that a positive association is present. Research1 published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2009 investigated whether the BMI of offspring was more strongly associated with the BMI of their parents in adulthood or childhood. The research was carried out on two generations, adults in the 1958 British birth cohort study (7, 11, 16, 23 and 33 years) as well as their offspring in 1991 (aged 4 to 18 years).
The results showed that between the two generations (1958 to 1991), BMI increase by an average of 0.25 to 1.10 kg/m2 and that rates of obesity increase from 10% to 16%. The BMI of the parents in adulthood and childhood independently influenced the BMI of the offspring, but their was no statistical difference in the strength of either influence. This suggests that parental BMI influences offspring BMI and that predictions on the levels of future obesity can be made from studying the parental generation. Changes to the typical diet in recent decades have undoubtedly played a role in the epidemic of obesity that is present in Western nations today. These results would suggest that the following generation will follow this pattern and show similar levels of obesity. Reductions in obesity may reduce obesity in future generations.
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