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Background Insomnia is common and associated with adverse pregnancy and perinatal outcomes in observational studies. However, those associations could be vulnerable to residual confounding or reverse causality. Our aim was to estimate the association of insomnia with stillbirth, miscarriage, gestational diabetes (GD), hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), perinatal depression, preterm birth (PTB), and low/high offspring birthweight (LBW/HBW). Methods and findings We used 2-sample mendelian randomization (MR) with 81 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) instrumenting for a lifelong predisposition to insomnia. Our outcomes included ever experiencing stillbirth, ever experiencing miscarriage, GD, HDP, perinatal depression, PTB (gestational age Conclusions In this study, we observed some evidence in support of a possible causal relationship between genetically predicted insomnia and miscarriage, perinatal depression, and LBW. Our study also found observational evidence in support of an association between insomnia in pregnancy and perinatal depression, with no clear multivariable evidence of an association with LBW. Our findings highlight the importance of healthy sleep in women of reproductive age, though replication in larger studies, including with genetic instruments specific to insomnia in pregnancy are important., Author(s): Qian Yang 1,2,*, Maria Carolina Borges 1,2, Eleanor Sanderson 1,2, Maria C. Magnus 1,2,3, Fanny Kilpi 1,2, Paul J. Collings 4, Ana Luiza Soares 1,2, Jane West 4, Per [...]

Background: Physical activity performed while pregnant is beneficially associated with maternal cardiovascular health. It is unknown if benefits extend to neonatal cardiovascular health. This study investigated associations of maternal physical activity with neonatal cord blood lipid and lipoprotein concentrations. Methods: Cord blood lipids were measured at birth in a pseudorandomly selected subgroup of Born in Bradford birth cohort participants (N = 1634). Pregnant women were grouped into 4 activity categories (inactive/somewhat active/moderately active/active) based on their self-reported physical activity at 26- to 28-weeks gestation. Regression was used to calculate adjusted mean differences in neonatal cord blood lipid concentrations among the 4 groups of physical activity. Results: Maternal physical activity was associated with higher neonatal cord blood high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Cord blood high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was higher in neonates of women who were somewhat and moderately active compared with neonates of women who were inactive. There were no associations of pregnancy physical activity with triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein, very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, or adiponectin levels. Conclusions: Maternal physical activity is favorably associated with neonatal cord blood high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. This novel beneficial finding highlights the potential for physical activity in pregnancy to aid the early prevention of cardiovascular disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study describes the levels and patterns of television (TV) viewing in Brazilian adults and investigates associations of TV viewing with hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. Methods: Data from the Brazilian Health Survey, a nationally representative survey that was conducted in 2013 (N = 60,202 men and women age≥ =18 y), were used. Information regarding TV viewing, physician diagnoses of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease was collected via interview-administered questionnaire. Data on covariables (including chronological age, educational status, skin color, sodium consumption, sugar consumption, tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, and leisure-time physical activity) were also selfreported. Logistic regression models and population attributable fractions were used for the etiological analyses. Results: The prevalence (95% confidence interval) of >4 hours per day of TV viewing was 12.7% (12.0-13.4) in men and 17.5% (16.8-18.3) in women. Men and women being younger or older, moderately educated, living alone, smoking tobacco, and drinking alcohol were associated with higher reported TV viewing time. Odds ratios (95% confidence interval) revealed that >4 hours per day of TV viewing was associated with type 2 diabetes [male: 1.64 (1.23-2.17) and female: 1.33 (1.09-1.63)], hypertension [male: 1.36 (1.14-1.63) and female: 1.20 (1.05-1.37)], and heart disease [male: 1.96 (1.43-2.69) and female: 1.30 (1.00-1.68)]. Exceeding 4 hours per day of TV viewing was responsible for 6.8% of type 2 diabetes, 3.7% of hypertension, and 7.5% of heart disease cases. Conclusions: Independent of covariates, >4 hours per day of TV viewing was associated with type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease. High volumes of TV viewing are prevalent and appear to contribute to chronic disease burden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Objectives: To investigate associations of bedtimes and sleep durations with adiposity levels in children and adolescents. Methods: Individual data were pooled for 12 247 children (5819 with follow‐up adiposity at 2.3 ± 1.4 years post‐baseline) and 3563 adolescents from 11 international studies. Associations between questionnaire‐based sleep durations, bedtimes and four groups of combined bedtimes and sleep lengths (later‐shorter [reference]/earlier‐shorter/later‐longer/earlier‐longer) with measured adiposity (body mass index [BMI] and waist circumference z‐scores) and weight status, were investigated. Results: In children, longer sleep durations were consistently associated with lower adiposity markers, and earlier bedtimes were related to lower BMI z‐score. Compared to sleeping <10 h, longer baseline sleep duration favourably predicted Δwaist z‐score in girls (≥10 and <11 h (β‐coefficient (95% confidence interval [CI])): −0.06 (−0.12 to −0.01)) and boys (≥11 h: −0.10 [−0.18 to −0.01]). Combined groups that were defined by longer sleep (later‐longer and earlier‐longer sleep patterns) were associated with lower adiposity, and later‐longer sleep favourably predicted Δwaist z‐score in girls (−0.09 [−0.15 to −0.02]). In adolescents, longer sleep durations and earlier bedtimes were associated with lower BMI z‐score in the whole sample, and also with lower waist z‐score in boys. Combined groups that were characterized by earlier bedtimes were associated with the same outcomes. For example, earlier‐shorter (−0.22 (−0.43 to −0.01) and earlier‐longer (−0.16 (−0.25 to −0.06) sleep were both associated with lower BMI z‐score. Conclusions: If the associations are causal, longer sleep duration and earlier bedtimes should be targeted for obesity prevention, emphasizing longer sleep for children and earlier bedtimes for adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background This study examined the joint associations of leisure time physical activity and television (TV) viewing time with the prevalence of chronic diseases among Brazilian adults. Methods Data from the Brazilian Health Survey, a nationally representative survey conducted in 2013 (n  = 60 202; ≥18 years), were used. Time spent in TV viewing and leisure physical activity, physician diagnoses of diabetes, hypertension and heart disease and information on co-variables (chronological age, education, ethnicity, candies/sweets consumption, sodium intake and tobacco smoking) were collected via interview. Descriptive statistics (mean and 95% confidence interval) and logistic regression models were used for etiological analyses. Results Physical activity attenuated but did not eliminate the risk associated with high TV viewing for at least one chronic disease in the general population [odds ratio [OR]: 1.29 (1.11–1.50)] and among women [OR: 1.31 (1.09–1.60)], adults [OR: 1.24 (1.05–1.46)] and older adults [OR: 1.63 (1.05–2.53)]. On the other hand, physical activity eliminated the risk associated with high TV viewing for at least one chronic disease among men [OR: 1.24 (0.98–1.58)]. Conclusions We conclude that physical activity can attenuate but not eliminate the negative effects of high TV viewing on chronic disease among subgroups of Brazilian adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a dearth of suitable metrics capable of objectively quantifying motor competence. Further, objective movement quality characteristics during free play have not been investigated in pre-school children. The aims of this study were to characterize children's free play physical activity and investigate how gait quality characteristics cluster with free play in pre-school children (3-5 years old). Sixty-one children (39 boys; 4.3 ± 0.7 years, 1.04 ± 0.05 m, 17.8 ± 3.2 kg) completed the movement assessment battery for children and took part in free play while wearing an ankle- and hip-mounted accelerometer. Characteristics of movement quality were profiled using a clustering algorithm. Spearman's rho and the Mann-Whitney U tests were used to assess relationships between movement quality characteristics and motor competence classification differences in integrated acceleration and spectral purity, respectively. Significant differences were found between motor competency classifications for spectral purity and integrated acceleration (p < .001). Spectral purity was hierarchically clustered with motor competence and integrated acceleration. Significant positive correlations were found between spectral purity, integrated acceleration and motor competence (p < .001). This is the first study to report spectral purity in pre-school children and the results suggest that the underlying frequency component of movement is clustered with motor competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]