Nine early life habits set you up for a lifetime of obesity, diabetes and heart disease, study finds

Bad habits stemming all the way back to infancy could lead to obesity, diabetes and heart disease later in life, a study suggests. 

Researchers at Penn State looked at nearly 150 women and their infants when the babies were two and six months old.

Using questionnaires, the team asked the mothers about everyday habits such as how often their infants ate, how much playtime they got in a day and when they typically went to sleep.

The researchers found that nine eating, sleeping and playtime behaviors the families followed when the infants were two months old were associated with higher body mass index (BMI) at six months old. 

These included giving infants bottles that were too big, feeding them too often throughout the night and going to bed after 8pm. 

Additionally, parents scrolling on their phones or watching TV during playtime were more likely to have overweight or obese infants. 

While many babies lose excess fat over time, excess weight gain during the first six months of an infant’s life set the stage for slow metabolism, which increases appetite and makes it harder to lose weight later on.  

Lifelong obesity is a risk factor for diabetes and also forces the heart to work harder to pump blood, increasing the risk of heart disease, America’s top killer that takes 1million lives every year. 

Yinging Ma, lead study author and doctoral student at The Child Health Research Center at Penn State, said: ‘By just two months of age, we can already see patterns in feeding, sleep and play that may shape a child’s growth trajectory.

‘This shows how important it is to screen early in infancy so we can support families to build healthy routines, prevent excessive weight gain and help every child get off to the best possible start.’

The study, published earlier this year in JAMA Network Open, looked at 143 mothers and their babies who were receiving care from Geiser Health System in Pennsylvania and were enrolled in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which provides food assistance for women and children. 

Mothers completed a 15-question survey about their infant’s diet, sleep, playtime and appetite, as well as if caregivers fed their babies with breastmilk, formula or a combination of the two. 

The average age of the mothers was 26, and 70 percent were white. The majority (58 percent) of households made under $25,000 per year, which is below the poverty line for a three-person household in the US. 

At two months old, 73 percent of infants were exclusively formula-fed. Infant growth was measured once at two months and again at six months. 

The team found that out of 12 behavioral routines, nine that were done when infants were two months old were associated with higher BMI and weight-to-length ratios when the babies turned six months.

In terms of feeding, these routines included using bottle sizes that were too big for the infant’s developmental stage, feeding too often at night and mothers thinking their infants were hungry more often than they actually were. 

Under the sleeping category, the four routines that led to higher weight were going to bed after 8pm, waking up more than twice at night, being put to bed while already asleep instead of drowsy and sleeping in a room with a TV playing. 

As for playtime, babies with higher BMIs were more likely to have parents who used their phone or watched TV during playtime and those who had limited active play or tummy time, when an infant spends time on their stomach to strengthen their upper body muscles.

Overfeeding infants, along with sedentary habits and a lack of physical activity, causes them to pack on weight. Poor sleep has been shown to increase levels of the hormone ghrelin, which stimulates appetite. 

While it’s unclear if the infants in the study remained overweight later in life, research shows early infancy is a key window that determines obesity risk. The first six months of an infant’s life determine metabolism, or how well the body is able to turn food into energy. Slower metabolism burns fewer calories, causing them to be stored as excess fat. 

This slow metabolism early in life can cause infants to have bigger appetites as they grow up and more fat mass, leading to obesity.

Affecting three in four Americans, overweight or obesity are primary risk factors for developing chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart disease. 

The team hopes to expand their research and look at families with a wider range of socioeconomic backgrounds, as the new study largely focused on low-income households.  

Jennifer Savage Williams, senior study author and professor and director of The Child Health Research Center at Penn State, said: ‘With the limited time available during pediatric and nutrition visits, it’s essential to help providers focus on what matters most for each family.’