Browsing by Author "Hetherington, M. M."

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    Childhood obesity and socioeconomic status: a novel role for height growth limitation.
    (2005) Cecil, J. E.; Watt, P.; Murrie, I. S. L.; Wrieden, W.; Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.; Bolton-Smith, C.; Palmer, C. N. A.
    OBJECTIVE: To assess prevalence and socioeconomic context of overweight and obesity in a cohort of Scottish children. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Primary schools in Dundee, Angus, and Fife, Eastern Scotland, UK. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1240 boys and 1214 girls aged between 4–10 y. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Weight, height and body mass index (weight/height2). RESULTS: Overall overweight or obesity prevalence was 24.6%, while prevalence of obesity alone was 6.1%. Individuals from schools with a high level of low-income families were 65% more likely to be overweight as judged by BMI. However, these children weighed the same as more affluent children of the same age, but were 1.26 cm shorter. CONCLUSION: These data confirm the continued increase in childhood obesity in the UK and reveal a role for height-growth limitation in the absence of overall growth restriction, among children from low-income groups. This observation raises important questions regarding socioeconomic environmental factors in promoting the currently increasing levels of obesity.
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    The effectiveness of a social media intervention for reducing portion sizes in young adults and adolescents
    (Sage, 2019-09-22) Blundell-Birtill, Pam; Sharps, Maxine; Hetherington, M. M.; Rolls, Barbara J.; Evans, Charlotte E.L.
    Abstract Objective: Adolescents and young adults select larger portions of energy-dense food than recommended. The majority of young people have a social media profile, and peer influence on social media may moderate the size of portions selected. Methods: Two pilot-interventions examined whether exposure to images of peers’ portions of high-energy-dense (HED) snacks and sugar-sweetened-beverages (SSBs) on social media (Instagram) would influence reported desired portions selected on a survey. Confederate peers posted ‘their’ portions of HED snacks and SSBs on Instagram. At baseline and intervention end participants completed surveys that assessed desired portion sizes. Results: In intervention 1, Undergraduate students (N=20, Mean age=19.0y, SD=0.65y) participated in a two-week intervention in a within-subjects design. Participants reported smaller desired portions of HED snacks and SSBs following the intervention, and smaller desired portions of HED snacks for their peers. In intervention 2, adolescents (N=44, Mean age=14.4y, SD=1.06y) participated in a four-week intervention (n=23) or control condition (n=21) in a between-subjects design. Intervention 2 did not influence adolescents to reduce their desired reported portion sizes of HED snacks or SSBs relative to control. Conclusions: These preliminary studies demonstrated that social media is a feasible way to communicate with young people. However, while the intervention influenced young adults’ reported desired portions and social norms regarding their peers’ portions, no significant impact on desired reported portion sizes was found for HED snacks and SSBs in adolescents. Desired portion sizes of some foods and beverages may be resistant to change via a social media intervention in this age group.
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    Emotions and eating: self-reported and experimentally-induced changes in food intake under stress.
    (2009) Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.
    Two studies investigated the stress–eating relationship. The first examined self-reported changes in intake of snack foods, whilst the second investigated stress-induced overconsumption in a laboratory setting comparing high (HF) and low-fat (LF) snacks. Eighty-nine females completed the Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (DEBQ) [Van Strien, T., Fritjers, J. E. R., Bergers, G. P. A., & Defares, P. B. (1986). Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire for assessment of restrained, emotional and external eating behaviour. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 5, 295–315] and a self-report measure designed to evaluate changes in eating in response to stress. Increased intake of HF snacks was associated with high emotional eating but not with restraint. A laboratory-based experiment compared intake of HF and LF snacks after ego-threatening and neutral Stroop colour-naming tasks. Intake was suppressed by 31.8% in restrained compared to unrestrained eaters across tasks. Restrained eaters consumed significantly less after ego-threat than after the neutral manipulation, but this was associated only with intake of the LF snack. Restrained eaters’ intake of dried fruit was suppressed by 33.2% after ego-threat relative to the neutral task, despite a significant increase in hunger for this group following ego-threat. These results suggest that the type and variety of foods offered influences the link between stress and eating in laboratory settings. Further research should aim to replicate and extend these findings, with a view to informing potential interventions for stress-related eating.
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    Energy intakes of children after preloads: adjustment, not compensation.
    (2005) Cecil, J. E.; Palmer, C. N. A.; Wrieden, W.; Murrie, I. S. L.; Bolton-Smith, C.; Watt, P.; Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.
    Background: Young children accurately compensate for energydense preloads consumed before test meals. The accuracy of compensation seems to deteriorate as a function of age. Objective: The hypothesis that accurate energy compensation varies by age, body mass index, and individual characteristics of children and their mothers was tested. Design: Energy intake (EI) from a test meal was measured in 74 children aged 6–9 y 90 min after the ingestion of no-energy (NE), low-energy (LE), or high-energy (HE) preload snacks. The NE preload consisted of 250 mL water, the LE preload consisted of a 56-g muffin a 250-mL orange drink (783 kJ), and the HE preload consisted of a 56-g muffin a 250-mL orange drink (1628 kJ). Results: A significant dose-related reduction in EI was found after the preloads; younger children adjusted more effectively than did older children, although total EI (including preload energy) indicated that the adjustment was not accurate. The compensation index (COMPX) differed by preload and age group; COMPX scores were higher between the NE and LE preloads (younger children: 44.4 9.3%; older children: 57.0 11.6%) than between the NE and HE preloads (39.6 4.9%; 31.3 6.2%) and the LE and HE preloads (35.2 7.8%; 7.4 9.8%). This finding indicates a more consistent response across preloads and a greater sensitivity to energy load by younger than by older children. High interindividual variation and low intraindividual variation inCOMPXwas found. The tendency to over- or undereat in response to the preloads (deviation from perfect) correlated directly and positively with maternal concerns about child overweight, not with actual BMI. Conclusions: The children adjusted their EIs in response to different preloads, and the younger children did so more effectively than did the older children. Poor short-term energy compensation may
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    Reaching consensus on a ‘vegetables first’ approach to complementary feeding
    (Wiley, 2016-08-14) Chambers, L.; Hetherington, M. M.; Cooke, L.; Coulthard, Helen; Fewtrell, M.; Emmett, P.; Lowdon, J.; Blissett, J.; Lanigan, J.; Baseley, C.; Stanner, S.
    On 5 May 2016, the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF) invited leading infant feeding experts to discuss and debate the strength of the evidence base on a ‘vegetables first’ approach to complementary feeding. Consensus was reached on the translation of the science into practical messages for parents/carers. In particular, it is known that familiarising infants with a variety of vegetables from the start of complementary feeding increases the likelihood that vegetables will be accepted throughout childhood, though currently in the UK vegetables tend not to be prioritised as first foods. Infant feeding guidance could include recommendations to offer tastes of a variety of vegetables when complementary feeding begins, as a first step in the transition from milk to solid foods, so that liking and acceptance are established during this early window of opportunity. This report describes the main themes emerging from the discussions and the specific messaging recommendations which could be included within infant feeding guidance.
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    Stimulation of appetite by alcohol.
    (2001) Hetherington, M. M.; Cameron, F.; Wallis, D. J.; Pirie, L. M.
    To investigate the effects of alcohol on appetite and food intake, 26 males attended the laboratory on three occasions. On each occasion, they were given a standard breakfast. Visual analog scale ratings of hunger, desire to eat and fullness (appetite ratings) were recorded from before breakfast until their return to the laboratory for lunch. Thirty minutes before lunch, subjects either rested (baseline), were given 330 ml of a no-alcohol lager (264 kJ: no-alcohol condition) or 330 ml of the same lager spiked with 3 units of alcohol (24 g ethyl alcohol; total energy = 969 kJ: alcohol condition). Ratings of appetite were taken before and after the preload or baseline rest period and again before and hourly after lunch. The test meal at lunch consisted of a buffet-style array of foods and chilled water. Ad libitum intake at lunch (excluding energy from alcohol) was significantly higher following alcohol (7301 ± 442 kJ) compared to both baseline (6365 ± 334 kJ) and the no-alcohol conditions (6479 ± 289 kJ). Appetite ratings failed to demonstrate any differences between alcohol and the no-alcohol condition. Total energy intake (including energy from alcohol) was enhanced in the alcohol condition by 30%, suggesting that energy from alcohol is not compensated in the short-term and may even have a stimulatory effect on food intake.
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    Stress and eating: the effects of ego-threat and cognitive demand on food intake in restrained and emotional eaters.
    (2004) Wallis, D. J.; Hetherington, M. M.
    Restrained and emotional eaters overeat in response to stress. To compare differential effects of cognitive demand and ego-threatening stressors on subsequent chocolate intake, 38 females completed a neutral (control), an ego threatening and an incongruent Stroop colournaming task on three separate occasions. Participants were assigned to four groups based on median-split scores on the restrained and emotional eating scales of the Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire—high restraint/high emotional, high restraint/low emotional, low restraint/high emotional and low restraint/low emotional. Higher response latencies were observed in the incongruent task, confirming its greater cognitive (attentional) demand. Overall intake was enhanced by 23% after ego-threat and 15% after the incongruent Stroop task relative to control. Restraint was associated with greater intake after both ego-threat and the incongruent task than in the control condition. In contrast, emotional eating was associated with greater intake after only the ego-threat, relative to control. A positive association between reaction time and subsequent intake in all conditions for high restraint/low emotional eaters provided support for the limited capacity hypothesis. Enhanced intake in emotional eaters is proposed to relate to escape from self-awareness. These findings demonstrate differential effects of threat and demand on stress-related eating in restrained and emotional eaters.
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    Variants of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor g- and b-adrenergic receptor genes are associated with measures of compensatory eating behaviors in young children.
    (2007) Cecil, J. E.; Palmer, C. N. A.; Fischer, B.; Watt, P.; Wallis, D. J.; Murrie, I. S. L.; Hetherington, M. M.
    Background: Young children can regulate energy precisely in the short term, showing the potential for an innate compensation mechanism of eating behavior. However, data suggest that precise compensation is attenuated as a function of increasing adiposity, parental feeding style, and age.Commonvariation in candidate obesity genes may account for some of the individual variation observed in shortterm energy compensation. Polymorphisms in the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPARG) and -adrenergic receptor (ADRB3) genes have been linked to increased body mass index (BMI; in kg/m2), obesity, and more recently dietary nutrients and preferences. In addition, common variation in ADRB3 interacts with PPARG to modulate adult body weight. Objective: This study investigated whether variants in these genes were associated with measurable effects on child eating behavior. Design: Children (n 84) aged 4–10 y were prospectively selected for variants of the PPARG locus (Pro12Ala, C1431T). Heights and weights were measured. Energy intake from a test meal was measured 90 min after ingestion of a no-energy (NE), low-energy (LE), or high-energy (HE) preload, and the compensation index(COMPX) was calculated. Results: BMI differed significantly by gene model, whereby Pro12Ala was associated with a lower BMI. Poor COMPX was associated with the PPARG T1431 allele (P 0.009). There was a significant interaction between COMPX and the ADRB3 Trp64Arg variant in modulating compensation (P 0.003), whereas the Arg64 allele was associated with good compensation (P 0.001). Conclusions: This is the first study to suggest that a genetic interaction involving ADRB3 and PPARG variants influences eating behavior in children.