Ventilatory responses at submaximal exercise intensities in healthy children and adolescents during the growth spurt period: a semi-longitudinal study

This study proposes age- and sex-specific percentiles for serum cobalamin and folate, and analyzes the effects of sex, age, body mass index (BMI), and socioeconomic status (SES) on cobalamin and folate concentrations in healthy children and adolescents. In total, 4478 serum samples provided by healthy participants (2 months–18.0 years) in the LIFE (Leipzig Research Centre for Civilization Diseases) Child population-based cohort study between 2011 and 2015 were analyzed by electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA). Continuous age-and sex-related percentiles (2.5th, 10th, 50th, 90th, 97.5th) were estimated, applying Cole’s LMS method. In both sexes, folate concentrations decreased continuously with age, whereas cobalamin concentration peaked between three and seven years of age and declined thereafter. Female sex was associated with higher concentrations of both vitamins in 13- to 18-year-olds and with higher folate levels in one- to five-year-olds. BMI was inversely correlated with concentrations of both vitamins, whilst SES positively affected folate but not cobalamin concentrations. To conclude, in the assessment of cobalamin and folate status, the age- and sex-dependent dynamic of the respective serum concentrations must be considered. While BMI is a determinant of both vitamin concentrations, SES is only associated with folate concentrations.

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Nutritional status of school children living in Northern part of Sri Lanka

BMC Pediatrics ◽

10.1186/s12887-021-02501-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

M. G. Sathiadas ◽

Annieston Antonyraja ◽

Arunath Viswalingam ◽

Kasthuri Thangaraja ◽

V. P. Wickramasinghe

Keyword(s):

Sri Lanka ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

School Children ◽

Household Income ◽

Maternal Education ◽

Overweight And Obesity ◽

Growth Spurt ◽

Healthy Children ◽

Important Indicator ◽

Height For Age

Abstract Background Nutritional status is an important indicator for measuring quality of life in children. A region that is recovering from war will face many problems related to nutrition. Very few studies have addressed the nutritional problems in school children. This study was undertaken to identify the prevalence of wasting, stunting and obesity among school children from Northern Sri Lanka and associated socio-demographic factors. Methods A community based cross-sectional study was carried out using multistage stratified proportionate cluster among healthy children attending schools in the Northern part of the country. Height and weight were measured, and Body Mass Index (BMI) calculated [weight (kg)/Height (m) 2]. BMI-for-age z-score (BAZ) and Height for age Z (HAZ) scores were determined and WHO growth references were used to categorise the nutritional status. Correlation between various nutritional problems with Maternal education, household income, number of family members and the residential area was assessed. Results A total of 1012 children were recruited, and the mean age and standard deviation were 11.12±1.77 yrs. Girls in the age ranges of 9–14 were heavier and taller when compared to the boys compatible with the pubertal growth spurt. Stunting based on the height for age was seen in 10.9% of boys and 11.8% of girls. Wasting based on BMI for age WHO standard (WHO 2007) was seen in 30.6% of boys and 29.1% of the girls. The prevalence of overweight was 11% and Obesity was 6.3% of the population. Obesity was predominantly seen in boys (4.2%) and it was significantly higher when compared to the girls (2.1%) (p < 0.001). Obesity in older boys (> 10 years) was significantly more than the younger ones (p < 0.01). Maternal education and family income had a significant impact on the prevalence of wasting, stunting and obesity whereas the family size contributed to the wasting and obesity (p< 0.001). Conclusion Findings suggest that stunting, wasting, overweight and obesity are prevalent among 6–16-year-old leading to concerns in public health. The nutritional status significantly varies according to the geographical location, maternal education and the household income.

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Fear conditioning and stimulus generalization in association with age in children and adolescents

European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry ◽

10.1007/s00787-021-01797-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Julia Reinhard ◽

Anna Slyschak ◽

Miriam A. Schiele ◽

Marta Andreatta ◽

Katharina Kneer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Children And Adolescents ◽

Fear Conditioning ◽

Repeated Measures ◽

Conditioned Fear ◽

Fear Learning ◽

Stimulus Generalization ◽

Healthy Children ◽

Older Individuals ◽

Age Related ◽

Current Task

AbstractThe aim of the study was to investigate age-related differences in fear learning and generalization in healthy children and adolescents (n = 133), aged 8–17 years, using an aversive discriminative fear conditioning and generalization paradigm adapted from Lau et al. (2008). In the current task, participants underwent 24 trials of discriminative conditioning of two female faces with neutral facial expressions, with (CS+) or without (CS−) a 95-dB loud female scream, presented simultaneously with a fearful facial expression (US). The discriminative conditioning was followed by 72 generalization trials (12 CS+, 12 GS1, 12 GS2, 12 GS3, 12 GS4, and 12 CS−): four generalization stimuli depicting gradual morphs from CS+ to CS− in 20%-steps were created for the generalization phases. We hypothesized that generalization in children and adolescents is negatively correlated with age. The subjective ratings of valence, arousal, and US expectancy (the probability of an aversive noise following each stimulus), as well as skin conductance responses (SCRs) were measured. Repeated-measures ANOVAs on ratings and SCR amplitudes were calculated with the within-subject factors stimulus type (CS+, CS−, GS1-4) and phase (Pre-Acquisition, Acquisition 1, Acquisition 2, Generalization 1, Generalization 2). To analyze the modulatory role of age, we additionally calculated ANCOVAs considering age as covariate. Results indicated that (1) subjective and physiological responses were generally lower with increasing age irrespective to the stimulus quality, and (2) stimulus discrimination improved with increasing age paralleled by reduced overgeneralization in older individuals. Longitudinal follow-up studies are required to analyze fear generalization with regard to brain maturational aspects and clarify whether overgeneralization of conditioned fear promotes the development of anxiety disorders or vice versa.

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The triglycerides and glucose index is associated with elevated blood pressure in apparently healthy children and adolescents

European Journal of Pediatrics ◽

10.1007/s00431-019-03392-x ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 178 (7) ◽

pp. 1069-1074 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Luis E. Simental-Mendía ◽

Gabriela Hernández-Ronquillo ◽

Claudia I. Gamboa-Gómez ◽

Rita Gómez-Díaz ◽

Martha Rodríguez-Morán ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Blood Pressure ◽

Children And Adolescents ◽

Elevated Blood Pressure ◽

Healthy Children ◽

Elevated Blood ◽

Apparently Healthy

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Prepubertal urinary estrogen excretion and its relationship with pubertal timing

AJP Endocrinology and Metabolism ◽

10.1152/ajpendo.00374.2010 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 299 (6) ◽

pp. E990-E997 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Lijie Shi ◽

Thomas Remer ◽

Anette E. Buyken ◽

Michaela F. Hartmann ◽

Philipp Hoffmann ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Pubertal Timing ◽

Height Velocity ◽

Breast Development ◽

Growth Spurt ◽

Age At Menarche ◽

Healthy Children ◽

Pubertal Growth Spurt ◽

Peak Height Velocity ◽

Pubertal Growth ◽

Estrogen Production

Whether prepubertal estrogen production impacts on the timing of puberty is not clear. We aimed to investigate prepubertal 24-h estrogen excretion levels and their association with early and late pubertal markers. Daily urinary excretion rates of estrogens of 132 healthy children, who provided 24-h urine samples 1 and 2 yr before the start of the pubertal growth spurt [age at takeoff (ATO)], were quantified by stable isotope dilution/GC-MS. E-sum3 (estrone + estradiol + estriol) was used as a marker for potentially bioactive estrogen metabolites and E-sum5 (E-sum3 + 16-epiestriol + 16-ketoestradiol) for total estrogen production. Pubertal outcomes were ATO, age at peak height velocity (APHV), duration of pubertal growth acceleration (APHV-ATO), age at Tanner stage 2 for pubic hair (PH2), genital (G2, boys) and breast (B2, girls) development, and age at menarche. Prepubertal urinary estrogen excretions (E-sum3 and E-sum5) were not associated with ATO, APHV, and age at PH2 but with duration of pubertal growth acceleration ( P < 0.01) in both sexes. Girls with higher E-sum3 reached B2 0.9 yr ( P = 0.04) and menarche 0.3 yr earlier ( P = 0.04) than girls with lower E-sum3. E-sum3 was not associated with age at G2 in boys ( P = 0.6). For most pubertal variables, the associations with E-sum3 were stronger than with E-sum5. In conclusion, prepubertal estrogens may not be critical for the onset of the pubertal growth spurt but are correlated with its duration in both boys and girls. Prepubertal estrogen levels may already predict the timing of girls' menstruation and breast development but do not appear to affect sexual maturation in boys.

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