Overweight in family members of probands with ADHD

Pauline M. Geuijen*, Jan K. Buitelaar, Ellen A. Fliers, Athanasios Maras, Lizanne J.S. Schweren, Jaap Oosterlaan, Pieter J. Hoekstra, Barbara Franke, Catharina A. Hartman, Nanda N. Rommelse

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

The widely reported association between ADHD and overweight may be attributable to genetic and environmental factors also present in unaffected family members. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the association between ADHD and overweight within families. A cohort was used of families with at least one member with ADHD, recruited as part of the Dutch node of the International Multicenter ADHD Genetics (IMAGE) study, with assessments taking place between 2003 and 2006, 2009 and 2012, and 2013 and 2015. The three assessment waves yielded N = 1828 youth assessments and N = 998 parent assessments from N = 447 unique families. Overweight was defined as a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 85th percentile for youth of the same age and sex; overweight in adults as a BMI ≥ 25. Effects of age, gender, and medication use (psychostimulants, antipsychotics, and melatonin) were taken into account. Generalized estimation equations were used to correct for within-family and within-subject correlations. There was no difference in risk between ADHD-affected youth and their unaffected siblings (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.78–1.09). However, compared to population prevalence data, all ADHD family members alike were at increased risk for being overweight: ADHD-affected youth (OR 1.33, 95% CI 1.13–1.59), unaffected siblings (OR 1.73, 95% CI 1.45–2.08), mothers (OR 1.74, 95% CI 1.40–2.17) and fathers (OR 1.78, 95% CI 1.46–2.15). Parental overweight—but not parental ADHD—was predictive of offspring overweight (mothers OR 1.40; 95% CI 1.14–1.73, fathers OR 1.83; 95% CI 1.41–2.36). Being overweight runs in ADHD families, yet is not specifically linked to ADHD within families. Shared unhealthy lifestyle factors (including nutrition, sleep, exercise, stress) as well as genetic factors shared by family members likely explain the findings.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1659-1669
Number of pages11
JournalEuropean Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Volume28
Issue number12
Early online date19 Apr 2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2019

Funding

This study used the sample from the NeuroIMAGE project. NeuroIMAGE was performed between 2009 and 2012, and is the follow-up study of the Dutch part of the International Multisite ADHD Genetics (IMAGE) project, a multisite, international effort. Funding support for the IMAGE Project was provided by National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grants R01MH62873 and R01MH081803 to Dr. Faraone. The follow-up and extension studies were supported by the Dutch Organization for Scientific Research (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek; NWO Large Investment Grant 1750102007010 and NWO Brain & Cognition an Integrative Approach Grant (433-09-242) to Dr. Buitelaar), and Grants from Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center, University Medical Center Groningen and Accare, and Free University (Vrije Universiteit, VU) Amsterdam. The research leading to these results also received funding from the European Community?s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007? 2013) under Grant agreement number 278948 (TACTICS) and from the European Community?s Horizon 2020 Programme under Grant agreement number 667302 (CoCA). Barbara Franke is supported by a personal Vici Grant from the NWO (016-130-669).

FundersFunder number
European Community’s Horizon 2020 Programme667302
National Institutes of HealthR01MH081803
National Institute of Mental HealthR01MH062873
Chiropractic and Osteopathic College of Australasia016-130-669
Seventh Framework Programme278948
Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek1750102007010, 433-09-242
Radboud Universitair Medisch Centrum

    Keywords

    • Adolescent
    • Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
    • Child
    • Family
    • Overweight

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