Dr. Kate Northstone

Dept of Social Medicine
University of Bristol
Bristol, UK

http://www.bristol.ac.uk/alspac/

Project title

The relationship between dietary patterns and changes in body fatness and lean mass in a contemporary cohort of children (2009/23)

Scientific abstract

Obesity is a major risk factor for cancer. Diet is particularly important for the development of obesity, but specific aspects of the diet that contribute to obesity have been difficult to define. Individual foods/nutrients are not eaten in isolation, therefore by looking at overall patterns of diet can help to better understand the causes of obesity.

Using data collected by the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), this study will investigate the relationships between dietary patterns throughout childhood and the fatness of the children, with particular focus on children who increase their body fat between 9 and 15 years of age. Participants have been weighed, measured and undergone body composition scans (measuring body fat and lean mass) four times between the ages of 9 and 15 years. Dietary intakes have also been assessed at several time points since birth using a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and 3-day diaries were collected at the ages of 10 and 13 years.

This study will provide unique insight into the relationship between different types of dietary patterns consumed during childhood and the accumulation of body fat during this time of growth. By focusing on overall dietary patterns consumed rather than individual nutrient intakes, this study will have the capacity to identify food-based interventions that have the potential to reverse the trend towards increasing obesity in the population.

Project plain language abstract

Background
Obesity is a major risk factor for cancer. Diet is particularly important for the development of obesity, but specific aspects of the diet that contribute to obesity have been difficult to define. Individual foods/nutrients are not eaten in isolation, therefore by looking at overall patterns of diet can help to better understand the causes of obesity.

Project details
Using data collected by the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), this study will investigate the relationships between dietary patterns throughout childhood and the fatness of the children, with particular focus on children who increase their body fat between 9 and 15 years of age. Participants have been weighed, measured and undergone body composition scans (measuring body fat and lean mass) four times between the ages of 9 and 15 years. Dietary intakes have also been assessed at several time points since birth using a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and 3-day diaries were collected at the ages of 10 and 13 years.

This study will provide unique insight into the relationship between different types of dietary patterns consumed during childhood and the accumulation of body fat during this time of growth. By focusing on overall dietary patterns consumed rather than individual nutrient intakes, this study will have the capacity to identify food-based interventions that have the potential to reverse the trend towards increasing obesity in the population.

Qualifications

Institution and location	Degree	Year	Scientific Field
University of Hull, UK	BSc	1991	Mathematics and Statistic
University of Southampton, UK	MSc	1995	Medical Statistics
University of Bristol, UK	PhD	2008	Nutritional Epidemiology

Previous employment

2000–present	Research Fellow, Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Department of Social Medicine, University of Bristol, UK
1995–2000	Research Assistant, Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children.  Institute of Child Health, University of Bristol, UK

Research interests

Nutritional Epidemiology, particularly dietary patterns.