Infant sleep and the development of obesity: Direct and indirect associations in four longitudinal cohorts

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Abstract

Childhood overweight and obesity are associated with a wide array of health and behavioral outcomes (e.g., high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, and depression) and impact over 39 million children under the age of 5 in the United States (WHO, 2021). Research on obesity and its common predecessors (e.g., rapid weight gain) documents risk factors in infancy, with most studies focusing on feeding practices and diet. However, a relatively recent shift in the field recognizes infant sleep as a potentially impactful predictor of later obesity. Data from four distinct longitudinal studies will be presented in this symposium which highlight associations between infant sleep and risk factors for obesity, including child (e.g., gut microbiome, temperament) and caregiver factors (e.g., stress, feeding practices). Three of the studies also document direct associations between less optimal infant sleep (e.g., less nighttime sleep, more night wakings) and rapid weight gain or child obesity. All four cohorts endorse associations between infant sleep and caregiver feeding practices, with less optimal sleep preceding or co-occurring with obesogenic feeding practices (e.g., feeding during night wakings, food to soothe infant distress). The relative strengths of these studies include the longitudinal nature of the data, three of the studies have notable racial/ethnic and sociodemographic diversity, and consistent findings with infant sleep are readily apparent across a range of assessment methods (e.g., actigraphy, parent report). In conclusion, evidence presented in this symposium has the potential to inform the development of obesity prevention interventions, particularly focused on the domains of infant sleep and feeding.

Sub Unit

• Health, Growth, Injury

Chairs

• Kameron Moding, Purdue University, West Lafayette

• AJ Schwichtenberg, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Individual Presentations

• Testing Associations between Prenatal Stress, Infant Sleep Characteristics, Breastfeeding, and Child Physical Growth over the First Years of Life - Presenting Author: Kirsten McLaughlin, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Amanda Wylie, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Sarah J Short, University of Wisconsin - Madison; Cathi Propper, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• Cross-lagged Associations Between Maternal Feeding to Soothe and Infant Sleep: Implications for Infant Weight Outcomes - Presenting Author: Esther M. Leerkes, UNC Greensboro; Agona Lutolli, University of North Carolina at Greensboro; Cheryl Buehler, University of North Carolina at Greensboro; Laurie Wideman, UNC Greensboro; Lenka Shriver, University of North Carolina at Greensboro

• Variation in Infant Feeding and Sleep-Wake Patterns are Associated with Differences in the Gut Microbiome in Toddlerhood - Presenting Author: Magdalena Olson, Arizona State University; Fang Zhou, Arizona State University; Kiley Vander Wyst, Arizona State University; Samantha Toffoli, Arizona State University; Elizabeth Reifsnider, Arizona State University; David P. McCormick, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston; Megan E. Petrov, Arizona State University; Corrie M. Whisner, Arizona State University

• Associations between Infant Temperament, Sleep, Feeding, and Weight in Infancy and Early Childhood - Presenting Author: Kameron Moding, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Elizabeth Irene Kielb, Purdue University, West Lafayette; Amy Janis, Purdue University, West Lafayette; AJ Schwichtenberg, Purdue University, West Lafayette