Association Between Exposure to the Chinese Famine in Different Stages of Early Life and Decline in Cognitive Functioning in Adulthood

Overview

Journal Front Behav Neurosci

Specialty Psychology

Date 2016 Jul 30

PMID 27471454

Citations 28

Authors

Chao Wang

Yu An

Huanling Yu

Lingli Feng

Quanri Liu

Yanhui Lu

Hui Wang

Rong Xiao

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objective: To investigate whether exposure to the Chinese Famine in different life stages of early life is associated with cognitive functioning decline in adulthood.

Methods: We recruited 1366 adults born between 1950 and 1964 and divided them into fetal-exposed, early childhood-exposed (1-3 years old during the famine), mid childhood-exposed (4-6 years old during the famine), late childhood-exposed (7-9 years old during the famine), and non-exposed groups. A selection of cognitive tests was administered to assess their cognitive performance. Association between malnutrition in different famine exposure periods and adult cognitive performance was estimated by multivariate logistic and multiple linear regression analyses.

Results: There were significant differences in cognitive performance between subjects exposed to famine during different life stages. For the general cognitive tests, fetal-exposed period was associated with decreased scores of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and late childhood-exposed with decreased scores of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). We also found exposure to famine during mid and late childhood was associated with worse performance on the Stroop color and word test.

Conclusion: Famine exposure in utero and during childhood is associated with overall and specific cognitive decline, affecting selective attention and response inhibition particularly.

Citing Articles

Individual and combined effects of famine exposure and obesity parameters on type 2 diabetes in middle-aged and older adults: A population-based cross-sectional study.

Li X, Li X, Sun L, Yang L, Wang C, Yuan T Medicine (Baltimore). 2024; 103(32):e39228.

PMID: 39121280 PMC: 11315537. DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000039228.

Sound-localization-related activation and functional connectivity of dorsal auditory pathway in relation to demographic, cognitive, and behavioral characteristics in age-related hearing loss.

Wu J, Nie S, Li C, Wang X, Peng Y, Shang J Front Neurosci. 2024; 18:1353413.

PMID: 38562303 PMC: 10982313. DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1353413.

Vulnerability of the Hippocampus to Insults: Links to Blood-Brain Barrier Dysfunction.

Davidson T, Stevenson R Int J Mol Sci. 2024; 25(4).

PMID: 38396670 PMC: 10888241. DOI: 10.3390/ijms25041991.

27-hydroxycholesterol causes cognitive deficits by disturbing Th17/Treg balance and the related immune responses in mild cognitive impairment patients and C57BL/6J mice.

Wang T, Feng W, Ju M, Yu H, Guo Z, Sun X J Neuroinflammation. 2023; 20(1):305.

PMID: 38115100 PMC: 10729399. DOI: 10.1186/s12974-023-02986-5.

Spectral quantitative and semi-quantitative EEG provide complementary information on the life-long effects of early childhood malnutrition on cognitive decline.

Razzaq F, Calzada-Reyes A, Tang Q, Guo Y, Rabinowitz A, Bosch-Bayard J Front Neurosci. 2023; 17:1149102.

PMID: 37781256 PMC: 10540225. DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1149102.

References

Waber D, Bryce C, Fitzmaurice G, Zichlin M, McGaughy J, Girard J . Neuropsychological outcomes at midlife following moderate to severe malnutrition in infancy. Neuropsychology. 2014; 28(4):530-40. PMC: 4131534. DOI: 10.1037/neu0000058. View

de Rooij S, Painter R, Phillips D, Raikkonen K, Schene A, Roseboom T . Self-reported depression and anxiety after prenatal famine exposure: mediation by cardio-metabolic pathology?. J Dev Orig Health Dis. 2014; 2(3):136-43. DOI: 10.1017/S2040174411000055. View

Stein A . Nutrition in early life and cognitive functioning. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013; 99(1):1-2. PMC: 3862448. DOI: 10.3945/ajcn.113.076828. View

Galler J, Bryce C, Waber D, Zichlin M, Fitzmaurice G, Eaglesfield D . Socioeconomic outcomes in adults malnourished in the first year of life: a 40-year study. Pediatrics. 2012; 130(1):e1-7. PMC: 3382923. DOI: 10.1542/peds.2012-0073. View

de Rooij S, Wouters H, Yonker J, Painter R, Roseboom T . Prenatal undernutrition and cognitive function in late adulthood. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010; 107(39):16881-6. PMC: 2947913. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1009459107. View

Raikkonen K, Kajantie E, Pesonen A, Heinonen K, Alastalo H, Leskinen J . Early life origins cognitive decline: findings in elderly men in the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study. PLoS One. 2013; 8(1):e54707. PMC: 3559835. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0054707. View

Hoek H, Susser E, Buck K, Lumey L, Lin S, Gorman J . Schizoid personality disorder after prenatal exposure to famine. Am J Psychiatry. 1996; 153(12):1637-9. DOI: 10.1176/ajp.153.12.1637. View

Waber D, Bryce C, Girard J, Zichlin M, Fitzmaurice G, Galler J . Impaired IQ and academic skills in adults who experienced moderate to severe infantile malnutrition: a 40-year study. Nutr Neurosci. 2013; 17(2):58-64. PMC: 3796166. DOI: 10.1179/1476830513Y.0000000061. View

Alamy M, Bengelloun W . Malnutrition and brain development: an analysis of the effects of inadequate diet during different stages of life in rat. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2012; 36(6):1463-80. DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.03.009. View

10.

Brown A, Susser E, Lin S, Neugebauer R, Gorman J . Increased risk of affective disorders in males after second trimester prenatal exposure to the Dutch hunger winter of 1944-45. Br J Psychiatry. 1995; 166(5):601-6. DOI: 10.1192/bjp.166.5.601. View

11.

Li Y, He Y, Qi L, Jaddoe V, Feskens E, Yang X . Exposure to the Chinese famine in early life and the risk of hyperglycemia and type 2 diabetes in adulthood. Diabetes. 2010; 59(10):2400-6. PMC: 3279550. DOI: 10.2337/db10-0385. View

12.

Lu J, Li D, Li F, Zhou A, Wang F, Zuo X . Montreal cognitive assessment in detecting cognitive impairment in Chinese elderly individuals: a population-based study. J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol. 2012; 24(4):184-90. DOI: 10.1177/0891988711422528. View

13.

Mu R, Zhang X . Why does the Great Chinese Famine affect the male and female survivors differently? Mortality selection versus son preference. Econ Hum Biol. 2010; 9(1):92-105. DOI: 10.1016/j.ehb.2010.07.003. View

14.

Song S, Wang W, Hu P . Famine, death, and madness: schizophrenia in early adulthood after prenatal exposure to the Chinese Great Leap Forward Famine. Soc Sci Med. 2009; 68(7):1315-21. DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.01.027. View

15.

Neugebauer R, Hoek H, Susser E . Prenatal exposure to wartime famine and development of antisocial personality disorder in early adulthood. JAMA. 1999; 282(5):455-62. DOI: 10.1001/jama.282.5.455. View

16.

Hoeijmakers L, Lucassen P, Korosi A . The interplay of early-life stress, nutrition, and immune activation programs adult hippocampal structure and function. Front Mol Neurosci. 2015; 7:103. PMC: 4288131. DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2014.00103. View

17.

de Rooij S, Painter R, Roseboom T, Phillips D, Osmond C, Barker D . Glucose tolerance at age 58 and the decline of glucose tolerance in comparison with age 50 in people prenatally exposed to the Dutch famine. Diabetologia. 2006; 49(4):637-43. DOI: 10.1007/s00125-005-0136-9. View

18.

Mitchell A, Shukla D, Ajumal H, Stubbs B, Tahir T . The Mini-Mental State Examination as a diagnostic and screening test for delirium: systematic review and meta-analysis. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 2014; 36(6):627-33. DOI: 10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2014.09.003. View

19.

Huang C, Phillips M, Zhang Y, Zhang J, Shi Q, Song Z . Malnutrition in early life and adult mental health: evidence from a natural experiment. Soc Sci Med. 2013; 97:259-66. PMC: 3726543. DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.09.051. View

20.

Guesry P . The role of nutrition in brain development. Prev Med. 1998; 27(2):189-94. DOI: 10.1006/pmed.1998.0292. View