Higher BMI trajectory during childhood may raise COPD risk later in life
Key takeaways:
- Adults who had an above-average BMI trajectory as children had an increased risk for COPD after age 40 years.
- Similar associations between childhood BMI and COPD risk were observed for both men and women.
Editor’s note: Full data from this research will be presented at the European Congress on Obesity in May.
Adults who had an above-average BMI, overweight or obesity during childhood have increased risk for developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to data from a meeting abstract.
Researchers used a latent class trajectory model to identify BMI trajectories among 276,747 children born in Denmark between 1930 and 1982. Researchers found adults who had a higher-than-average BMI trajectory during childhood were more likely to develop chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at age 40 years or older.
The data were released in an advance meeting abstract and will be presented in full at the European Congress on Obesity in May.
“The results shed light on childhood as a window of opportunity for preventive measures to improve respiratory health in a life course perspective,” Frida Richter, MSc, a PhD student in the Center for Clinical Research and Prevention at Copenhagen University Hospital-Bispebjerg and Frederiksberg in Denmark, told Healio. “Clinicians should be aware that children with overweight may face impaired lung health at older ages.”
Childhood BMI measures were obtained from the Copenhagen School Health Records Register. Children who had between two and 12 height and weight measures from age 6 to 15 years were included in the study. BMI trajectories were categorized as below average, average, above average, overweight and obesity. COPD diagnoses during adulthood were collected from 1977 to 2022 from national health care registers.
There were 18,227 women and 15,789 men diagnosed with COPD during follow-up. Women who had an above-average BMI trajectory (HR = 1.1; 95% CI, 1.06-1.15), overweight BMI trajectory (HR = 1.26; 95% CI, 1.2-1.33) and obesity BMI trajectory (HR = 1.65; 95% CI, 1.5-1.83) during childhood were more likely to develop COPD than those with an average BMI trajectory during childhood.
Compared with men with an average BMI trajectory during childhood, the risk for COPD was elevated by 7% for men with an above-average BMI trajectory, 16% for those with an overweight BMI trajectory and 40% for men with an obesity trajectory.
Women with a below-average BMI trajectory were less likely to develop COPD than those with an average BMI trajectory (HR = 0.91; 95% CI, 0.87-0.95).
Richter said it was surprising to see a clear association between a higher BMI during childhood and the development of COPD during adulthood, though prior studies found a link between childhood adiposity and asthma.
“Based on these strong results linking overweight and obesity across childhood ages to COPD in adulthood, we urgently need to examine if there’s a critical developmental window during childhood and adolescence during which the damage becomes permanent,” Jennifer L. Baker, PhD, head of lifecourse epidemiology research in the Center for Clinical Research and Prevention at Copenhagen University Hospital-Bispebjerg and Frederiksberg in Denmark, and president-elect of the European Association for the Study of Obesity, told Healio. “Understanding this could help pinpoint when early interventions could be most effective at reversing or at least mitigating the harmful long-term effects on lung health.”
Reference:
- Study uncovers link between childhood overweight and obesity and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in adulthood. https://easo.org/study-uncovers-link-between-childhood-overweight-and-obesity-and-chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-in-adulthood. Published March 21, 2025. Accessed March 21, 2025.
For more information:
Jennifer L. Baker, PhD, can be reached at jennifer.lyn.baker@regionh.dk.
Frida Richter, MSc, can be reached at frida.richter.hansen@regionh.dk.
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Richter F, et al. Abstract 38. To be presented at: European Congress on Obesity; May 11-14, 2025; Malaga, Spain.
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