Associations of Metal Mixtures During Early Pregnancy With Midlife Obesity and Body Composition: A Prospective Study.

Objective: To examine the prospective associations of metal mixtures during pregnancy with midlife adiposity and explore metal-folate interactions.

Methods: In 500 participants from Project Viva, we measured six non-essential metals (arsenic, barium, cadmium, cesium, mercury, and lead) and five essential metals (copper, magnesium, manganese, selenium, and zinc) in red blood cells and folate in plasma collected during early pregnancy (mean gestational age: 10.0 weeks; mean age: 32.

Associations of maternal neighborhood and trauma-related stressors with mitochondrial DNA copy number and telomere length in maternal and cord blood.

Neighborhood and individual-level trauma-related stressors during pregnancy can increase oxidative stress, potentially altering cellular disease pathway biomarkers such as mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn) and telomere length (TL). However, the biological mechanisms linking early-life stressors to long-term health outcomes remain understudied. In a subset of Project Viva participants (n = 415-917), we evaluated associations of neighborhood and individual-level stressors with mean relative mtDNAcn and TL measured in first trimester maternal blood and cord blood.

Dentin Metal and Trace Elements in Deciduous Teeth: Findings from Project Viva.

Deciduous teeth can reveal historical exposure to metals, yet their distribution within populations remains underexplored. This study aimed to characterize metal levels in deciduous teeth, compare measurements across duplicate teeth, and assess associations with maternal blood metal concentrations during pregnancy, while considering maternal and child characteristics. We recruited women into Project Viva between 1999 and 2002 during early pregnancy.

Associations of street-view greenspace exposure with cardiovascular health (Life's Essential 8) among women in midlife.

Background: Many women experience suboptimal cardiovascular health (CVH) during midlife. Greenspace exposure has been inversely associated with cardiovascular disease because it may reduce harmful environmental exposures and promote healthy behaviors. Most prior studies used satellite-based rather than ground-level exposures and did not examine overall CVH.

Lifetime history of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy is associated with shorter sleep duration and more sleep disturbance in midlife: results from the Project Viva women's health cohort.

Background: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) are associated with worse prenatal and perinatal sleep health and higher cardiovascular disease risk beyond the peripartum period. The relationship of HDP with sleep health in midlife, when sleep problems are common, remains unclear.

Methods: We studied women enrolled in Project Viva during early pregnancy (1999-2002) with sleep outcomes assessed in midlife (2017-2024).

Neighborhood Vulnerability and Age of Natural Menopause and Menopausal Symptoms Among Midlife Women.

Importance: Women experiencing more severe menopausal symptoms exhibit poorer quality of life, and those with early menopause have a higher risk of developing chronic diseases. However, the extent to which neighborhood disadvantage contributes to menopause onset and symptom severity remains understudied.

Objective: To examine the association of Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) with age of natural menopause onset and menopausal symptom severity.

The Interplay of Dietary Choline and Methyl Donors in Modulating Maternal Inflammation: Insights from Project Viva.

Background: Inflammation during pregnancy is an important contributor to maternal and offspring morbidity and mortality. Evidence from both nonpregnant human and animal studies suggests that dietary choline can attenuate inflammation, but this has not yet been explored in human pregnancy.

Objectives: This study explored the cross-sectional associations between maternal mid-pregnancy dietary choline intake and inflammation biomarkers, specifically IL-6, tumor necrosis factor- α (TNF-α), and C-reactive protein (CRP), while also examining the modifying effects of other methyl donor nutrients.

Physical Activity May Attenuate the Association of Early Adolescent Adiposity With PCOS Assessed in Later Adolescence: Findings From a Prospective Cohort, Project Viva.

Objective: To assess how moderate-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) may modify the association of early adolescent adiposity with late adolescent polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Methods: Within the Project Viva prospective cohort, we assessed the association of body mass index z-score (BMIz) at early adolescence (mean age 13.1 years) with later PCOS (self-reported diagnosis or oligo-anovulation with clinical/biochemical hyperandrogenism) at mean age 17.

Associations of Infertility With Depressive Symptom Change Across Specific Life Stages (Pregnancy, Postpartum, and Midlife) Among Parous Women.

Background: Limited longitudinal data exist on the associations of infertility with depressive symptoms across the lifecourse.

Objectives: To investigate how depressive symptoms change across specific life stages (pregnancy, postpartum, and midlife), with a focus on the differences between women with and without a history of infertility before index pregnancy.

Methods: Women enrolled in Project Viva (1999-2002) during early pregnancy (mean [SD] age 32.

Prenatal and Perinatal Factors of Life's Essential 8 Cardiovascular Health Trajectories.

Importance: The American Heart Association put forth the Life's Essential 8 construct to assess cardiovascular health (CVH) based on 8 biological and behavioral factors. Few studies have identified prenatal and perinatal factors of CVH trajectories across childhood and adolescence, life stages where disease precursors and health behaviors are established.

Objective: To examine associations of prenatal and perinatal factors with child CVH trajectory.

Associations of Infant Colic and Excessive Crying With Atopic Outcomes in Childhood and Adolescence.

Objective: To assess the extent to which risks of atopic and respiratory conditions throughout childhood and adolescence differ by history of (1) infant colic, characterized by apparent abdominal discomfort and unsoothable crying, (2) excessive crying without colic, or (3) neither condition.

Study Design: Among 1249 children participating in the prospective, unselected Project Viva cohort, we examined associations of history of infant colic or excessive crying without colic with risks of eczema, allergic rhinitis, asthma, and respiratory infections, measured in toddlerhood, early childhood, mid-childhood, early adolescence, and mid-adolescence using multinomial logistic regression models.

Results: The study sample was 50% female and 71% non-Hispanic White; 26% had colic and 9% excessive crying.

Associations of adiponectin concentrations from birth until late adolescence with insulin resistance.

Introduction: We investigated associations of adiponectin concentrations from birth to adolescence with insulin resistance in late adolescence using data from Project Viva prospective birth cohort (Eastern Massachusetts, 1999-2002).

Methods: We conducted multivariable linear regression models between adiponectin (internal z-scores) at birth, early childhood, mid-childhood, early and late adolescence and insulin resistance in late adolescence with the homeostasis model for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR).

Results: In 468 children (52% female, 59% Non-Hispanic White), we observed inverse associations of adiponectin z-scores in mid-childhood (-0.

Cardiometabolic trajectories across midlife in parous women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Compare cardiometabolic trajectories of 557 parous women with diagnosed, probable, and no polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) throughout 15-year follow-up (2002-2021). We defined PCOS status as: (1) clinically diagnosed; (2) probable: without diagnosis but ≥2 of the following: cycle length <21 or ≥35 days, free testosterone >75th percentile, or anti-Müllerian hormone >75th percentile; (3) no PCOS. Outcomes included longitudinal adiposity, blood pressure, lipids, glycemia, and adipokines.

Associations of metal mixtures in early pregnancy with lung function and asthma in mid-childhood in Project Viva.

Whether fetal lung development may be vulnerable to gestational exposure to metals is unknown. We analyzed mother-child pairs in Project Viva, a prospective pre-birth cohort in eastern Massachusetts, USA. Concentrations of 11 essential and non-essential metals were measured in maternal first-trimester erythrocytes (~10 weeks).

Early-pregnancy per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and maternal post-pregnancy weight trajectory.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate associations of early-pregnancy plasma per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) with maternal post-pregnancy weight trajectory parameters.

Methods: We studied 1106 Project Viva participants with measures of early-pregnancy plasma concentrations of eight PFAS. We measured weight at in-person visits at 6 months and 3, 7, and 12 years after pregnancy and collected self-reported weight via annual questionnaires up to 17 years after pregnancy.

Pregnancy Metal Mixtures and Blood Pressure and Hypertension in Mid-Life: A Prospective U.S. Cohort Study.

Background: The long-term associations between metal mixtures in pregnancy and women's mid-life blood pressure (BP) and hypertension remain unclear.

Methods: In Project Viva (enrolled 1999-2002), we measured nonessential (arsenic, barium, cadmium, cesium, mercury, lead) and essential metals (copper, magnesium, manganese, selenium, zinc) in red blood cells, along with folate and vitamin B12 in plasma, collected during pregnancy. We measured mid-life BP from 2017 to 2021 (median age, 51.

Short-term exposure to relative humidity and lung health in early adolescents.

Background: Extremes in humidity can induce bronchoconstriction and trigger breathing symptoms in people with asthma. Less is known about how humidity influences measurements of lung health in children and adolescents. Our objective was to assess the extent to which short-term exposures to high and low relative humidity (RH) are associated with lung function and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) in adolescents.

High risk of asthma among early teens is associated with quantitative differences in mite and cat allergen specific IgE and IgG4: a modified Th2 related antibody response revisited.

Background: Although proteins derived from cats are an important contributor to indoor allergen exposure in relation to asthma, it has been known for at least twenty years that some children who live in a house with a cat can become clinically tolerant to these animals. In 2001, we reported that children exposed to high levels of cat allergens made high levels of IgG4 antibodies to the cat allergen Fel d 1, and we coined the term "a modified Th2 response". However, this phenomenon is still poorly understood.

Shorter weeknight sleep duration mediates the relationship between earlier adrenarche and depressed mood in adolescents.

Background: Shorter weeknight sleep duration has not been assessed as a mediating mechanism linking earlier pubertal timing to a greater burden of adolescent depression symptoms.

Methods: Among 1138 participants (48.6 % female) from Project Viva, a pre-birth longitudinal cohort, we examined relationships among pubertal timing measures, actigraphy-captured and self-reported weeknight sleep duration across mid-adolescence, and depression symptoms in late adolescence.

Long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and epigenetic age acceleration in children.

Long-term exposure to ambient air pollution has been associated with epigenetic age acceleration (EAA) in adults, but its impact on children remains less understood. This study analyzed data from 457 children (mean age: 7.9 years) in the Project Viva cohort (2007-2010, eastern Massachusetts, USA).

Associations of maternal per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance plasma concentrations during pregnancy with offspring polycystic ovary syndrome and related characteristics in project viva.

Background: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) may impact ovarian folliculogenesis and steroidogenesis, but whether prenatal exposure may impact offspring reproductive health is unknown. This study examines the extent to which maternal PFAS plasma concentrations during pregnancy are associated with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and related characteristics in female offspring.

Methods: We studied 322 mother-daughter pairs in Project Viva, a Boston-area longitudinal pre-birth cohort enrolled 1999-2002.

Associations of gestation length and offspring birthweight for gestational age with menopausal symptoms and age of natural menopause at midlife among women enrolled in a prebirth longitudinal cohort.

Objective: Reproductive history may help identify women at higher risk for experiencing menopausal symptoms. We hypothesized that gestation length and offspring birthweight for gestational age z-scores would be associated with menopausal symptoms and age at natural menopause in midlife among women in a longitudinal prebirth cohort.

Methods: Among 691 women enrolled in pregnancy and followed to midlife, we examined associations of gestation length and offspring birthweight for gestational age z-score at the index pregnancy with total menopausal symptoms assessed with the 11-item Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) using linear regression models, with individual menopausal symptoms using binomial regression models with a log link function, and with age at natural menopause using Cox proportional hazards models.

Trajectory of Cardiovascular Health Across Childhood and Adolescence.

Importance: The American Heart Association put forth the Life's Essential 8 construct to assess cardiovascular health (CVH) based on 8 behavioral and health factors. Few studies have characterized the natural history of CVH in early life or identified its sociodemographic determinants.

Objective: To characterize CVH trajectories across childhood and adolescence and identify associations with sociodemographic variables.

Associations of PFAS concentrations during pregnancy and midlife with bone health in midlife: Cross-sectional and prospective findings from Project Viva.

Background: PFAS may impair bone health, but effects of PFAS exposure assessed during pregnancy and the perimenopause-life stages marked by rapidly changing bone metabolism-on later life bone health are unknown.

Methods: We studied 531 women in the Boston-area Project Viva cohort. We used multivariable linear, generalized additive, and mixture models to examine associations of plasma PFAS concentrations during early pregnancy [median (IQR) maternal age 32.