Year: 2016
Type: book-chapter
Abstract: Excessive caloric intake, insufficient physical activity and sleep deprivation are major lifestyle factors involved in the development of childhood overweight.Another recently identified potential predictor of overweight is chronic stress.Although children are not always recognized as being susceptible to stress, chronic exposure to stressful situations is not uncommon and may adversely affect their physiological and psychological health.After all, childhood is a period of incessant physical and brain development creating the foundation of adult psychopathology, lifestyle and adiposity.This chapter aims to give a short literature overview on the stress-adiposity associations, its underlying pathways, some future research perspectives and finally prevention and intervention strategies to tackle the stress-adiposity association, particularly in children.Some evidence on the stress-adiposity relation exists but the directionality is still unclear.Therefore, longitudinal studies are warranted.Recent reviews also highlighted the paucity of studies in the young age groups such as primary school children.Major underlying pathways are the stress hormone cortisol and lifestyle changes like diet, physical activity and sleep.More innovative suggested mechanisms are chronic inflammation and the composition and activity of the gut bacteria.Importantly, sex, age, cortisol reactivity and lifestyle can modify the strength or direction of the stress-adiposity association.From a pediatric perspective, the role of parents should of course also
Authors: Nathalie Michels, Inge Huybrechts
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Vlaamse regering
OpenAlex ID: W2620661254