Abstract Background Childhood family structure is considered to play a role in person’s health and welfare. This study investigated the relationships between the longitudinal changes of adult health ...behaviours and childhood family structure. Methods From Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 questionnaires, we collected data on childhood family structure at the age of 14 (‘two-parent family’, ‘one parent not living at home/no information on father’, and ‘father or mother deceased’), and on health behaviours (smoking, alcohol consumption and physical activity status) at the ages of 31 and 46. We used the multinomial logistic regression model to estimate the unadjusted and adjusted associations between childhood family structures and the longitudinal changes between 31 and 46 years of health behaviours (four-category variables). Results Of the study sample ( n = 5431; 55.5% females), 7.1% of the offspring were represented in the ‘One parent not living at home/no information on father’ subgroup, 6.3% in the ‘Father or mother deceased’ subgroup and 86.6% in the ‘Two-parent family’. ‘One parent not living at home/no information on father’ offspring were approximately twice as likely to smoke (adjusted OR 2.19, 95% CI 1.70–2.81) and heavily consume alcohol (adjusted OR 1.99, 95% CI 1.25–3.16) at both times in adulthood, relative to not smoking or not heavily consume alcohol, and compared with ‘two-parent family’ offspring. We found no statistically significant associations between childhood family structure and physical activity status changes in adulthood. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the offspring of single-parent families in particular should be supported in early life to diminish their risk of unhealthy behaviours in adulthood.
The global epidemic of obesity and physical inactivity may have detrimental implications for young people's cognitive function and academic achievement. This prospective study investigated whether ...childhood motor function predicts later academic achievement via physical activity, fitness, and obesity. The study sample included 8,061 children from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986, which contains data about parent-reported motor function at age 8 y and self-reported physical activity, predicted cardiorespiratory fitness (cycle ergometer test), obesity (body weight and height), and academic achievement (grades) at age 16 y. Structural equation models with unstandardized (B) and standardized (β) coefficients were used to test whether, and to what extent, physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness, and obesity at age 16 mediated the association between childhood motor function and adolescents' academic achievement. Physical activity was associated with a higher grade-point average, and obesity was associated with a lower grade-point average in adolescence. Furthermore, compromised motor function in childhood had a negative indirect effect on adolescents' academic achievement via physical inactivity (B = -0.023, 95% confidence interval = -0.031, -0.015) and obesity (B = -0.025, 95% confidence interval = -0.039, -0.011), but not via cardiorespiratory fitness. These results suggest that physical activity and obesity may mediate the association between childhood motor function and adolescents' academic achievement. Compromised motor function in childhood may represent an important factor driving the effects of obesity and physical inactivity on academic underachievement.
Animal studies demonstrate a clear link between prenatal exposure to glucocorticoids (GC) and altered offspring brain development. We aim to examine whether prenatal GC exposure programs long-term ...mental health in humans.
Using propensity-score-matching, children prenatally exposed to synthetic glucocorticoids (sGC), n=37, and controls, n=185, were balanced on important confounders related to sGC treatment--gestational age and pre-pregnancy BMI. We also used mixed-effects modeling to analyse the entire cohort--matching each sGC case, n=37, to all possible controls, n=6079, on gestational age and sex. We obtained data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 at four waves--pregnancy, birth, 8 and 16 years. Data on pregnancy and birth outcomes came from medical records. Mental health was assessed at 8 years by teachers with the Rutter B2 scale, and at 16 years by parents with the Strengths and Weaknesses of ADHD symptoms and Normal behavior (SWAN) scale and adolescents by the Youth Self-Report (YSR) scale.
Prenatal sGC treatment was consistently associated with adverse mental health in childhood and adolescence, as shown by both the propensity-score method and mixed-effects model. Using the propensity-score-matched subsample, linear multiple regression showed prenatal sGC was significantly linked with general psychiatric disturbance (B=8.34 95% CI: .23-16.45) and inattention (B= .97 95% CI: .16-1.80) at 8 years after control for relevant confounders. Similar findings were obtained at 16 years, but did not reach statistical significance. Mediation by birthweight/placental weight was not detected.
This study is the first to prospectively investigate the long-term associations between prenatal exposure to sGC treatment and mental health in children and adolescents. We report an association between prenatal exposure to sGC and child mental health, supportive of the idea that sGC has a programming effect on the fetal brain.
The quantity and quality of adolescents’ sleep may have changed due to new technologies. At the same time, the prevalence of neck, shoulder and low back pain has increased. However, only a few ...studies have investigated insufficient quantity and quality of sleep as possible risk factors for musculoskeletal pain among adolescents. The aim of the study was to assess whether insufficient quantity and quality of sleep are risk factors for neck (NP), shoulder (SP) and low back pain (LBP). A 2-year follow-up survey among adolescents aged 15–19 years was (2001–2003) carried out in a subcohort of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 (
n
= 1,773). The outcome measures were 6-month period prevalences of NP, SP and LBP. The quantity and quality of sleep were categorized into sufficient, intermediate or insufficient, based on average hours spent sleeping, and whether or not the subject suffered from nightmares, tiredness and sleeping problems. The odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for having musculoskeletal pain were obtained through logistic regression analysis, adjusted for previously suggested risk factors and finally adjusted for specific pain status at 16 years. The 6-month period prevalences of neck, shoulder and low back pain were higher at the age of 18 than at 16 years. Insufficient quantity or quality of sleep at 16 years predicted NP in both girls (OR 4.4; CI 2.2–9.0) and boys (2.2; 1.2–4.1). Similarly, insufficient sleep at 16 years predicted LBP in both girls (2.9; 1.7–5.2) and boys (2.4; 1.3–4.5), but SP only in girls (2.3; 1.2–4.4). After adjustment for pain status, insufficient sleep at 16 years predicted significantly only NP (3.2; 1.5–6.7) and LBP (2.4; 1.3–4.3) in girls. Insufficient sleep quantity or quality was an independent risk factor for NP and LBP among girls. Future studies should test whether interventions aimed at improving sleep characteristics are effective in the prevention and treatment of musculoskeletal pain.
Abstract Objective. Regular physical activity provides young people with important physical, mental, and social health benefits. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship of family income and ...parents' level of education with physical activity in Finnish adolescents. Method. The study population consisted of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986, including 5457 boys and girls aged 15–16 years, and their parents who responded to a postal inquiry in 2001–2002. The associations between social background and adolescents' physical activity were analyzed in 2005 using cross-tabulation and multivariate logistic regression. Results. High parental education was associated with adolescents being physically active. In boys father's high educational level (OR: 0.56; CI: 0.33, 0.95), and in girls both mother's (OR: 0.55; CI: 0.31, 0.98) and father's (OR: 0.35; CI: 0.20, 0.61) high educational levels were related to the least time spent watching TV. High family income was associated with being an active sports club member in boys (OR: 2.43; CI: 1.74, 3.40) and girls (OR: 2.67; CI: 1.81, 3.94). Adolescents' participation in different types of physical activity varied according to family income. Conclusions. Economic support for youth sports and informing parents on ways to encourage adolescents' physical activity are recommended to ensure equal opportunities for youths to participate in different physical activities.
This prospective longitudinal study investigates whether suspected motor problems and low preference for active play in childhood are associated with physical inactivity and low cardiorespiratory ...fitness in adolescence.
The study sample consisted of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 (NFBC 1986) composed of 5,767 children whose parents responded to a postal inquiry concerning their children's motor skills at age 8 years and who themselves reported their physical activity at age 16 years. Cardiorespiratory fitness was measured with a cycle ergometer test at age 16 years. Odds ratios (OR) and their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for the level of physical activity and fitness were obtained from multinomial logistic regression and adjusted for socio-economic position and body mass index. Low preference for active play in childhood was associated with physical inactivity (boys: OR 3.31, 95% CI 2.42-4.53; girls: OR 1.79, 95% CI 1.36-2.36) and low cardiorespiratory fitness (boys: OR 1.87, 95% CI 1.27-2.74; girls: OR 1.52, 95% CI 1.09-2.11) in adolescence. Suspected gross (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.33-3.49) and fine (OR 1.88, 95% CI 1.35-2.60) motor problems were associated with physical inactivity among boys. Children with suspected motor problems and low preference for active play tended to have an even higher risk of physical inactivity in adolescence.
Low preference for active play in childhood was associated with physical inactivity and low cardiorespiratory fitness in adolescence. Furthermore, children with suspected motor problems and low preference for active play tended to have an even higher risk of physical inactivity in adolescence. Identification of children who do not prefer active play and who have motor problems may allow targeted interventions to support their motor learning and participation in active play and thereby promote their physical activity and fitness in later life.
The purpose of the study was to estimate the prevalence of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and its clinical characteristics in the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986.
A general ...population Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 of 9,432 children followed prospectively from the early fetal period was surveyed at adolescence (ages 16-18) for ADHD behaviors. Among 6,622 respondents to the survey, a subset of 457 likely cases and controls were evaluated for ADHD and other psychiatric disorders. Chi-square and descriptive statistics were used to examine clinical characteristics of ADHD in the subset, and logistic regression was used to estimate prevalence by weighted extrapolation in the larger cohort.
The estimated prevalence of ADHD among adolescents in the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 is 8.5% with a male/female ratio of 5.7:1. The distribution of ADHD subtypes among the ADHD adolescents is 28% Combined, 64% Inattentive, and 8% Hyperactive-Impulsive. A lifetime diagnosis of a broadly defined ADHD (probable or definite) had a prevalence of 18.2% with a male/female odds ratio (OR) of 3.2. This lifetime diagnosis of ADHD is significantly associated with anxiety (OR 2.4), mood (OR 2.9), and disruptive behavioral disorders (OR 17.3) in the cohort.
ADHD is a common neurobehavioral disorder among Northern Finnish adolescents and significantly associated with psychiatric comorbidity in adolescence.
Physical inactivity is known to be associated with mental health problems in adulthood, but the association in youth is unclear. This study evaluated the association between the level of physical ...activity and the prevalence of emotional and behavioral problems in Finnish adolescents.
The study population consisted of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 including 7002 adolescents who responded to a postal inquiry in 2001-2002 at the age of 15-16 yr. They completed the Youth Self-Report questionnaire assessing their emotional and behavioral problems and a questionnaire concerning their moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA). The odds ratios (OR) and their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for having different emotional and behavioral problems were obtained in 2007 from logistic regression and adjusted for family type, income, parents' education, and body mass index.
In boys, physical inactivity (1 h or less of MVPA per week) was associated with anxious/depressed symptoms (OR = 2.9, 95% CI = 1.5-5.7), withdrawn/depressed symptoms (OR = 2.8, 95% CI = 1.8-4.2), social problems (OR = 3.6, 95% CI = 1.8-5.1), thought problems (OR = 2.3, 95% CI = 1.1-5.2), and attention problems (OR = 1.9, 95% CI = 1.0-3.4) when compared to being physically active (4 h or more of MVPA per week). In girls, physical inactivity was associated with withdrawn/depressed symptoms (OR = 2.3, 95% CI = 1.5-3.6), somatic complaints (OR = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.0-1.9), social problems (OR = 3.2, 95% CI = 1.7-6.1), attention problems (OR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.3-3.2), and rule-breaking behavior (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.3-2.5) compared to being physically active.
Physical inactivity was associated with several emotional and behavioral problems in adolescents. Future research should investigate the mechanisms behind these associations and the effectiveness of physical activity in the treatment of emotional and behavioral problems among young people.
Abstract Musculoskeletal pain in multiple sites is common already in adolescence, and may lead to subsequent musculoskeletal complaints in adulthood. We examined predictive factors for the ...persistence of multiple musculoskeletal pains in adolescence over a 2-year time span. A postal questionnaire was administered to a subsample of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 ( n = 1773) when subjects were aged 16 and 18. The adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the possible risk factors of new-onset of multiple pains at 18 years and 2-year persistence of multiple pains were obtained using multinomial logistic regression. Multiple musculoskeletal pains were common; 43% of boys and 63% of girls at 16, and 61% of boys and 81% of girls at 18 reported pain in more than one site during the last 6 months. Moreover, multiple pains had a high persistence rate, as 75% of boys and 88% of girls with multiple pains at 16 reported multiple pains also at 18. In the multivariate analysis, emotional and behavioral problems (internalizing problems, OR 2.3; externalizing problems, OR 2.2), and high sitting time (OR 1.6) among boys, and internalizing problems (OR 3.7), high physical activity level (OR 1.6), short sleeping time (OR 1.7), and smoking (OR 1.9) among girls were predictive factors for the persistence of multiple pains. No statistically significant associations between the baseline variables and new-onset multiple pains were found. Multiple musculoskeletal pains appear to have a high tendency to persist in adolescence; both psychosocial factors and lifestyle factors contribute to this vulnerability.
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