Research

Intervention in childhood can have long lasting impacts on health

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Freya Lucas

Oct 18, 2024

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Early lifestyle changes can have long lasting impacts on a person’s life trajectory, a new study from the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) has found.

Researchers examined a diet and physical activity intervention in childhood and adolescence, finding that it profoundly influenced metabolism even years later.

The Physical Activity and Nutrition in Children (PANIC) study is the first lifestyle intervention study using advanced liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) metabolomics technology to analyse molecular mechanisms underlying the health effects of lifestyle changes from childhood to adolescence.

By analysing blood samples, the researchers were able to identify changes in 80 metabolites.

“These were metabolites linked to critical processes for the development of cardiometabolic diseases, such as lipid metabolism, inflammation, and gut health,” Postdoctoral Researcher Iman Zarei said.

What makes the findings particularly important is that 17 of these metabolites remained altered even after eight years, although the most intensive part of the lifestyle intervention only lasted for the first two years.

This suggests that an early intervention might not just have immediate benefits but also longer-lasting health effects.

Some of the most notable changes were in fatty amides, molecules involved in a variety of physiological functions such as inflammation, weight control, eating behaviour, sleep induction, pain and anxiety control, angiogenesis, arterial dilation and neuroprotection.

Such changes may be linked to a lower risk of several chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

“Our research provides compelling evidence that early and sustained lifestyle changes can have a profound impact on a child’s health trajectory,” lead researcher Professor Timo Lakka added, emphasising the importance of starting healthy habits early, noting that these changes could prevent the onset of chronic diseases that often begin to develop in childhood or even over the fetal period.

Read the full study here.

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