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Background: The antioxidant lutein is suggested as being beneficial to cardiometabolic health because of its protective effect against oxidative stress, but evidence has not systematically been evaluated. Objective: We aimed to evaluate systematically the effects of lutein (intake or concentrations) on cardiometabolic outcomes in different life stages. Design: This is a systematic review with meta-analysis of literature published in MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central, Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar up to August 2014. Included were trials and cohort, case-control, and cross-sectional studies in which the association between lutein concentrations, dietary intake, or supplements and cardiometabolic outcomes was reported. Two independent investigators reviewed the articles. Results: Seventy-one relevant articles were identified that included a total of 387,569 participants. Only 1 article investigated the effects of lutein during pregnancy, and 3 studied lutein in children. Furthermore, 31 longitudinal, 33 cross-sectional, and 3 intervention studies were conducted in adults. Meta-analysis showed a lower risk of coronary heart disease (pooled RR: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.80, 0.98) and stroke (pooled RR: 0.82; 95% CI: 0.72, 0.93) for the highest compared with the lowest tertile of lutein blood concentration or intake. There was no significant association with type 2 diabetes mellitus (pooled RR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.77, 1.22), but higher lutein was associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome (pooled RR: 0.75; 95% CI: 0.60, 0.92) for the highest compared with the lowest tertile. The literature on risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases showed that lutein might be beneficial for atherosclerosis and inflammatory markers, but there were inconsistent associations with blood pressure, adiposity, insulin resistance, and blood lipids. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that higher dietary intake and higher blood concentrations of lutein are generally associated with better cardiometabolic health. However, evidence mainly comes from observational studies in adults, whereas large-scale intervention studies and studies of lutein during pregnancy and childhood are scarce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abnormal gestational weight gain (GWG) is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. We examined whether dietary patterns are associated with GWG. Participants included 3374 pregnant women from a population-based cohort in the Netherlands. Dietary intake during pregnancy was assessed with food-frequency questionnaires. Three a posteriori-derived dietary patterns were identified using principal component analysis: a “Vegetable, oil and fish”, a “Nuts, high-fiber cereals and soy”, and a “Margarine, sugar and snacks” pattern. The a priori-defined dietary pattern was based on national dietary recommendations. Weight was repeatedly measured around 13, 20 and 30 weeks of pregnancy; pre-pregnancy and maximum weight were self-reported. Normal weight women with high adherence to the “Vegetable, oil and fish” pattern had higher early-pregnancy GWG than those with low adherence (43 g/week (95% CI 16; 69) for highest vs. lowest quartile (Q)). Adherence to the “Margarine, sugar and snacks” pattern was associated with a higher prevalence of excessive GWG (OR 1.45 (95% CI 1.06; 1.99) Q4 vs. Q1). Normal weight women with higher scores on the “Nuts, high-fiber cereals and soy” pattern had more moderate GWG than women with lower scores (´0.01 (95% CI ´0.02; ´0.00) per SD). The a priori-defined pattern was not associated with GWG. To conclude, specific dietary patterns may play a role in early pregnancy but are not consistently associated with GWG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Maternal diet during pregnancy may affect body composition of the offspring later in life, but evidence is still scarce. Objective: We aimed to examine whether maternal dietary patterns during pregnancy are associated with body composition of the child at age 6 y. Methods: This study was performed among 2695 Dutch motherchild pairs from a population-based prospective cohort study from fetal life onward. Maternal diet was assessed in early pregnancy by a 293-item semiquantitative food-frequency questionnaire. Vegetable, fish, and oil; nuts, soy, and high-fiber cereals; and margarine, snacks, and sugar dietary patterns were derived from principal component analysis.We measured weight and height of the child at age 6 y at the research center. Total body fat and regional fat mass percentages of the child were assessed with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Results: In the crude models, statistically significant associations were found for higher adherence to the vegetable, fish, and oil dietary pattern and the nuts, soy, and high-fiber cereals dietary pattern with lower body mass index, lower fat mass index, and lower risk of being overweight, but none of these associations remained significant after adjustment for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors.We found no associations between the margarine, snacks, and sugar dietary pattern and any of the outcomes. Conclusion: Our results suggest that the associations between maternal dietary patterns during pregnancy and body composition of the child at age 6 y are to a large extent explained by sociodemographic and lifestyle factors of mother and child. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Choline is a precursor of both betaine and acetylcholine and might, therefore, influence cardiovascular and cognitive outcomes. There has been concern, however, that it may influence blood lipid levels because it is an essential component of very-low-density lipoproteins. Objective: The aim was to systematically review, using PRISMA guidelines, the literature pertaining to the effects of choline on body composition and on metabolic, cardiovascular, respiratory, and neurological outcomes in different life stages. Data Sources: The MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central, Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar databases were searched up to July 2014. Data Extraction: Fifty relevant articles were identified. These comprised trials and cohort, case-control, and cross-sectional studies that assessed blood levels of choline, dietary intake of choline, and supplementation with choline in a population free of diseases at baseline. Data Synthesis: There is some observational evidence that choline during pregnancy may be beneficial for the neurological health of the child. In adults, choline may have beneficial effects on cognition, but high-quality (intervention) studies are lacking. Results on the effects of choline on body composition, blood lipids, and cardiovascular health were inconsistent. Conclusions: Evidence to confirm the suggested effects of choline on health in different stages of life is scarce. Potential effects of choline need to be confirmed by intervention studies. Possible harmful effects on cardiometabolic health need careful evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background & Aims: Cardiometabolic risk has its origins in early life. However, it is unclear whether diet during early childhood is associated with cardiometabolic health, and what the role is of obesity. We aimed to study whether overall diet during early childhood is associated with cardiometabolic health and to examine if difference in body composition explain this association., Methods: We examined associations of different types of dietary patterns in infancy with cardiometabolic health at school age among 2026 Dutch children participating in a population-based cohort in the Netherlands. Food intake at the age of 1 year was assessed with a food-frequency questionnaire. Three dietary pattern approaches were used: 1) An a priori-defined diet quality score; 2) dietary patterns based on variation in food intake, derived from principal component analysis (PCA); and 3) dietary patterns based on variations in fat and fat-free mass index, derived with reduced-rank regression (RRR). At the children's age of 6 years, we measured their body composition, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and serum concentrations of insulin, triglycerides, and HDL-cholesterol, which we combined in a cardiometabolic risk-factor score., Results: We observed that, after adjustment for confounders, children with higher adherence to a 'Health-conscious' PCA-derived pattern had a lower cardiometabolic risk-factor score (-0.07 SD (95%CI -0.12; -0.02) per SD). This association did not change after adjustment for fat and fat-free mass index. The RRR-derived dietary patterns based on variations in body composition were not associated with the cardiometabolic risk-factor score., Conclusions: Our results suggest that diet in early childhood may affect cardiometabolic health independent of differences in body composition., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd and European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. All rights reserved.)

Background & Aims: Maternal nutrition during pregnancy might be important in influencing offspring cardiometabolic health. However, research has focused mostly on specific nutrients or total energy, and possible effects of whole diet are unclear. We aimed to assess the associations between different dietary patterns during pregnancy and offspring cardiometabolic health among 2592 mother-child pairs from Generation R, a prospective population-based cohort study from fetal life onwards in Rotterdam, the Netherlands., Methods: Maternal diet was assessed in early pregnancy with a food-frequency questionnaire. We identified three a posteriori-dietary patterns, namely a 'Vegetable, fish and oil', 'Nuts, soy and high-fiber cereals' and 'Margarine, snacks and sugar'-pattern. An a priori-pattern was created based on the 'Dutch Healthy Diet Index'. Cardiometabolic health (pulse wave velocity, blood pressure, insulin, HDL-cholesterol and triglycerides) was measured at the child's age of 6 years., Results: In the crude models, the 'Vegetable, fish and oil', 'Nuts, soy and high-fiber cereals' and 'Dutch Healthy Diet Index' seemed beneficial, as higher adherence to these patterns was significantly associated with lower blood pressure and lower pulse wave velocity. After adjustment for other socio-demographic and lifestyle factors, most associations disappeared, except for lower pulse wave velocity with the 'Vegetable, fish and oil'-dietary pattern (-0.19 SD (95% CI -0.33; -0.06), highest quartile of adherence vs. lowest quartile). No associations were found between maternal dietary patterns and offspring blood lipids or insulin levels., Conclusions: Our results suggest that there are no consistent independent associations of maternal dietary patterns with offspring cardiometabolic health at 6 years., (Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Background: Lutein, a fat-soluble carotenoid present in green leafy vegetables and eggs, has strong antioxidant properties and could therefore be important for respiratory health., Design: We systematically reviewed the literature for articles that evaluated associations of lutein (intake, supplements or blood levels) with respiratory outcomes, published in Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central, PubMed, Web of Science and Google Scholar, up to August 2014., Results: We identified one Randomized Control Trial (RCT), two longitudinal, four prospective and six cross-sectional studies. The individual studies obtained a Quality Score ranging between 3 and 9. Six studies were performed in children, which examined bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), asthma and wheezing. In adults, 7 studies investigated asthma, respiratory function and respiratory mortality. The RCT found a borderline significant effect of lutein/zeaxanthin supplementation in neonates on the risk of BPD (OR 0.43 (95% CI 0.15; 1.17). No association was found between lutein intake or levels and respiratory outcomes in children. A case-control study in adults showed lower lutein levels in asthma cases. Three studies, with a prospective or longitudinal study design, in adults found a small but a significant positive association between lutein intake or levels and respiratory function. No association was found in the other two studies. In relation to respiratory mortality, one longitudinal study showed that higher lutein blood levels were associated with a decreased mortality (HR 0.77 (95% CI 0.60; 0.99), per SD increase in lutein)., Conclusion: The published literature suggests a possible positive association between lutein and respiratory health. However, the literature is scarce and most studies are of observational nature., (Copyright © 2016 European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: With increasing life expectancy, there is a focus on "healthy ageing". Most activities in this area focus on the elderly. However, the ageing process starts much earlier. Childhood offers an important window to lay a base for future healthy ageing. Thus, to address the full ageing process, we should include younger populations in ageing research. If we aim for healthy ageing across the life course, we need to clarify the meaning of health at different ages. The aim of this paper was to develop a conceptual framework for child health, which can be used as a starting point for healthy ageing research from a life course perspective., Results: We conceptualize child health as: "a dynamic state, not merely the absence of disease or disability, but also adequate resilience that permits optimal physical, mental, and social functioning, and optimal quality of life in order to achieve full potential and to become an independent, functional, and social individual." We propose five core dimensions of child health: Absence of physical disease; absence of psychiatric disorders; optimal physical, mental, and social functioning, including adequate development; good quality of life or well-being; and adequate resilience., Conclusion: This conceptualization of child health and its dimensions can be seen as a first step towards building a framework for future studies into healthy ageing across the life course., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

We studied the associations of maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index and gestational weight gain with risks of preschool wheezing in offspring and explored the role of growth, infectious and atopic mechanisms. This substudy of 4656 children was embedded in a population-based birth cohort. Information about maternal pre-pregnancy weight, gestational weight gain and wheezing at the ages of 1-4 years was obtained by either physical measurements or questionnaires. Among mothers with a history of asthma or atopy, maternal pre-pregnancy obesity was associated with an overall increased risk of preschool wheezing (odds ratio 1.47, 95% confidence interval 1.12-1.95). Also, each standard deviation increase of gestational weight gain was associated with an increased overall risk of preschool wheezing (1.09, 1.04-1.14), was independent of pre-pregnancy body mass index and was not different between mothers with and without a history of asthma or atopy. Child's growth, respiratory tract infections or eczema did not alter the results. Mothers with pre-pregnancy obesity and a history of asthma or atopy, and mothers with higher gestational weight gain showed higher risks of wheezing in their offspring. These associations could not be explained by growth, infectious or atopic mechanisms. Further research is needed to identify underlying mechanisms and long-term consequences.