INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE
CHARACTERISTICS ON THE BODY TRAITS OF
PRESCHOOL CHILDREN
FRANCISCO BRAZA AND CRISTINA SAN JOSÉ
Estaciôn BiolOgica de Do/lana, CSIC, Spain
The authors studied the influence of maternal reproductive characteristics on their pit-school
children’s body traits in a village in southern Spain, assuming that children’s size at prc-schooi
age is associated with their future reproductive palterns. The variables considered were: I)
mother’s age al menarche, as a more genetically informative variable, 2) as a mote environmental
variable, they propose a new index of maternal time availability, and 3) birth weight to control
its influence on early patterns of growth. The children’s body trails considered were weight and
height, and a body mass index was also computed. According to these results, the mother’s age
at menarche is related to those body parameters which probably influence the children’s future
reproductive strategies.
Human reproductive charactensucs may
vary from individual to individual,
are short-term (maxiF-
within the continuum between reproductive patterns which
rancisco Braza and Cristina San José, Estacian BiolOgica de Dodana, CSIC. Spain.
This research was supponed by the Spanish DOICYT (project No. PB94-00l0) and by the Ministry of
Education and Research (research contract). Thc authors thank [he tcachers from the kindergarten of
“Zahara de La Sierra” and the childrcn’s families for their collaboration. Dala were collected with the
help of José A. Luna, Chari Carreras, 3. Manuel Mufloz, and Xenia Casanova, which was very much
appreciated. The authors are grateful to Enrique Collado, Dr. Pedro Jordano, and Dr. Jiavier Cuervo
for their help in analyzing data as well as for [heir comments. ALicia Prieto contributed to the preparation
of the manuscript. Prot José RamOn Lorenzo (Fact. CC de La Educacidn, Univ. CIdiz) provided the
growth curves and sables on the Andalusian children.
Appreciation is due to reviewers including: Prof. Jose Ramon Sanchez, Facullad de Psicologia,
Universidad de San Sebastian, Spain, and Prof. Rosario Carreras, Faeultad Dc Formacion del
Profesorado, Universidad de Cadiz, Spain.
Kcywords: Age at menarche, Mother’s availability, Reproductive strategies, Body traits, Preschool
children, Spain.
Please address correspondence and reprint requests to: Francisco Braza. Estacidn BioLdgica de Doflana,
CSIC, Avda. M’ bsisa s/n, Pabellón del Peru, 41013 ScvilLa, Spain. Phone: +34 5 4232340; Fax:
+34 5 4621125; Email: <braza@ebd.csic.es>
417
418
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS
mizing mating effort: early menarche, early sexual activity, early first reproduction, high number and low quality of offspring) and long-tenn (maximizing parenting
effort: late onset of puberty, late first sexual intercourse and reproduction, and
fewer but better quality offspring).
AlL these factors could be affected by two kinds of determinants. Firstly, the
genetic influence measured by the inheritance of these factors, which would
explain the characteristics shared by the individuals and their parents. There are
reports suggesting the inheritance of reproductive characteristics as, for instance,
the concordance of mothers and daughters in menarche timing (Campbell & Udry,
1995; Graber, Brooks-Gunn, & Warren, 1995; Wolanski, 1995). Secondly, environmental conditions (e.g., nutrition, life quality of life, family context, etc.) could
also affect the reproductive characteristics of individuals; and so Chisholm (1993)
revised the consequences of early stress on the way people allocate their reproductive effort.
Genetic studies suggest that the contribution of genotypic effects to the variance
in menarcheal timing is stronger than that of environmental ones (Kaprio, et al.,
1995). However, the environmental influence on age of menarche in girls has been
extensiveLy evidenced (Belsky, Steinberg & Draper, 1991; Draper & Harpending,
1982; Ellis, Mc Fadyen-Ketchum, Dodge, Petit & Bates, 1999; Graberet al., 1995;
Moffit, Caspi, Belsky & Silva 1992; Steinberg, 1988; Wierson, Long & Forehand,
1993).
On the other hand, although birth weight is correlated to growth status during
childhood, Gofin, Adler, and MaddeLa (1993) pointed out that the influence of
birth weight on the early pattern of growth is not maintained through adolescence,
and found that, at the age of 14, most of the explained variance was attributed to
the measurements at the age of six. Khan, Schroeder, Martorell, Haas, and Rivera
(1996) demonstrated (hat a linear growth retardation during this period of early
childhood is associated with a delay in menarche. Draper and Harpending (1982)
have shown that there is a sensitive period in early childhood, approximately from
birth to five years oLd, and that physical and behavioral changes during this period
may have significant repercussions on the onset of puberty and future reproductive
strategies of individuals.
Thus, assuming that the children’s physical development at preschool age is
important with respect to their future reproductive patterns, the aim of the present
research is to study the reLationship between maternal reproductive patterns (age at
menarche, number of siblings, interbirth interval) and the variation of the body
traits of pre-school girls and boys.
—
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS
419
METHOD
PARTICIPANTS
The study was carried out in Zahara de la Sierra, a village of around 2000 inhabitants in the mountain ranges of Cádiz (southern Spain) during 1997. The participants were a group of pre-school children (n= 38; 25 girls, 13 boys), who belonged
to Lower-middle socio-economic class families. Both the living conditions and nutrition patterns in a restricted area are homogeneous. In aLl cases both mother and
father were living with the children. A demographic profile of the sample is shown
in Table 1.
DEMOGRAPHIC
TABLE 1
CHARACTERISTICS OF
ThE SAMPLE (N=
Girls (n=25)
Al
Age of the ehildren (years)
Mother’s age at the chiJd’s birth (years)
Father’s age at the child’s birth (years)
Mother’s age at menarche (years)
Birth weight (kg) of the child studied
5.823
27.240
30.680
12.400
3.218
38)
Boys (n=13)
SD
0.447
5.659
6.619
1.155
0.466
Al
5.577
28.462
30.615
12.692
3.405
SD
0.435
4.594
6.158
1.251
0.440
VAR1ABLES MEAsURED
A) Dependent variables.
1) Height: distance between the interparietal union and the floor (in meters).
2) Body weight (in kilograms).
3) A body mass index (hereafter BMI = body weight/height squared) was also
computed.
The heights and weights of pre-school children were obtained during the first
days of the school year. A trained staff member collected both measurements using
standard anthropologic procedures, The children’s heights and weights were measured using a standard tape measure mounted to a wall, and electronic bathroom
scales.
Although the range of ages of the children is small, there is still an age-related
growth effect in height and weight. Height and the weight values were substituted
for their z-scores ((Weight (or Height) ii)/a) with respect to the distribution of the
same sex and age of Andalusian children (Fact. CC de Ia Educación, Univ. de
Cádiz).
-
B) independent
variables.
The mothers were questioned about their reproductive histories (age at menarche,
number, age and sex of their previous children, and birth weight of the children
studied). The variabLes selected were:
420
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS
1) Mother’s age at menarche (hereafter MAM).
2) Maternal Time Index (hereafter MTI): In order to assess the mother’s time
available for the chiLd studied, the authors propose a new index which takes into
account the number of siblings and birth interval up to the moment the studied
child is measured; this index could provide infonnation about the proximal family
environment where children grow up. The index was calculated as follows:
MTI=Z
1=0
Sp+SFj
j=o
= Birth following the birth of the study subject; Ti = Interval between one
birth and the next or up to the moment when the study subject was measured (T0 is
the interval between the birth of the study subject and the next birth) S= number
of siblings precedent to the birth of the subject studied; SFJ= number of siblings
born in birth j, being j=O the birth in which the subject studied was born.
3) Birth weight (hereafter BW) of the studied child: in order to control its possible influence on the early pattern of growth.
ANALYSIS
Girls and boys were analyzed separately, taking into account that sexual differences in human parental investment and sexual selection are to be expected
(Kenrick & Trost, 1993). A significant difference in weight at preschool age was
detected, the girls being heavier than the boys (ANOVA F = 5.773, p = 0.0216),
MultipLe least square regressions were used (Abacus Concepts, Statview 4.1,
1992) to analyze the relative contribution of maternal reproductive parameters to
the children’s body characteristics at preschool age.
RESULTS
No significant correlation was detected between the three maternal reproductive characteristics (MAM, MTI, and BW) considered in the case of the preschool
girls (Pearson’s Correlation ranging -0.267 r S 0.127).
Table 2 shows that, when regressing the body traits of pre-school girls to MAM
and to MTI, a significant negative contribution of the MAM to both weight and
BMI at pre-schooL age was found. The MTE did not contribute significantly to the
body traits of girls at pre-school age.
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS
421
TABLE 2
BODY TRAiTS OF PRESCHOOL OWLS REGRESSIONS ON MuIHER’s AGE AT MENARCHE (MAM) AND
MATERNAL TIME INDEX (MTI)
p
Coefficient
Lntercept
MAM
MTI
= 0.217, df= 22. F = 3.050, p
20.858
-0.452
a) Weight
-0.068
=
-2.378
-0.360
0.0223
0.0265
0.7223
-0.289
0,616
-1.326
0.7754
0.5443
0.1986
2.459
0.0677
Coefficient
Intercept
b) Height
MAM
MTI
W= 0.082, df= 22, F = 0.981, p = 0.3909
-2.248
0.127
-0.273
p
p
Coefficient
Intercept
MAM
MTI
0.332, df = 22, F 5A66, p
14.961
-0.581
0.068
C) BMI
=
3.200
-3.306
0.389
0.0041
0.0032
0.7009
0.0118
As can be seen in Table 3, when regressing the body traits of pre-school girls to
MAM and to 8W, there was a tendency towards a negative contribution of the
MAM to weight at pre-schooL age, and a significant negative contribution of the
MAM to the BMI was found. The 8W did not contribute significantly to the body
traits of girls at pre-school age.
TABLE 3
BODY TRAITS OF PRESCHOOL GiRLS RLGRESSIONS ON MOTHER’S AGE AT MENARCHE
(MAM) AND
BIRTH WEIGHT (BW) OF THE CHILD STUDIED
p
Coefficient
Intercept
a) Weight
MAM
BW
R2=0.291, df= 22, F = ‘4.SI9,p
8.734
-0.383
0.291
=
0.795
-2.058
1.563
Intercept
MAM
BW
R20.I44,df=22F= l.847,p=O.1813
b) Height
-16.537
0.194
0.382
p
-1.616
0.948
1.864
0.1204
0.3535
00757
2.248
-3.106
0.188
0.0349
0.0052 **
0.8523
p
Coefficient
14.354
-0.563
0.034
=
*
0.0227
Coefficient
Intercept
c) BMI
MAM
BW
R2= 0.328, df= 22, F S.38O,p
0.4354
0.0516
0.1324
0.0125
When considering the correlation between the three maternal reproductive characteristics in the case of boys, a significant positive reLationship was detected
between MAM and MTI (r = 0.647, p = 0.0149, Pearson’s Correlation) only.
422
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE CI-IARACTERISTICS
Table 4 shows that, when regressing the body traits of preschool boys to MAM
and ?VITJ, a significant negative contribution of MAM to the weight at pre-school
age was found. As can be seen in Table 5, when regressing the body traits of boys
to MAM and to 8W, a significant negative contribution of the MAM to the weight
and height at pm-school age was found. A significant contribution of the 8W to the
height of boys at pre-school age was also found.
TABLE 4
BODY TRAITS OF PRESCHOOL Boys REGREsSIONS ON MOTHER’S AG! AT MENARCHE
MATERNAL TIME INDEX (M’I’I)
Coefficient
Intercept
MAM
Ml’!
R2= 0.419. df= 10 F = 3.609, p
22.021
-0.729
0.139
a) Weight
=
0.0661
tntercept
b) Height
=
0.275, df
MAM
=
MTI
10, F = 1.893, p = 0.2008
Intercept
MAM
c)BMI
MTI
R2= 0.239, df= 10, F
=
I
2.509
-2.306
0.441
(NIAM)
AND
p
0.0310
0.0438 *
0.6685
Coefficieni
a’
p
27.586
-0.604
1.843
-1.710
0.140
0.398
0.0951
0.1181
0.6992
Coefficient
r
p
7.721
-0A95
0.009
1.545
-L.369
0.1534
0.2011
0.9804
0.025
L573, p = 0.2548
TABLE S
BODY TRAITS OF PRESCHOOL Boys REGRESSIONS ON MOTHER’S AGE AT MENARCHE
BIRTH WEIGHT (BW) OF THE CHILD STUDIED
Coefficieni
Intercept
10.336
MAM
BW
R2= 0.588. df= 10, F = 7.l23,p = 0.0119
-0.647
0.424
a) Weight
b) Height
=
0.590, df
=
2.087
Coefficient
a’
tnrercept
4.535
MAM
-0.524
0.375
-2.589
2.824
13W
10, F = 7. t97, p = 0.01 t6
Intercept
c) BMI
I
1.301
-3.185
MAM
BW
R1=0.265,df= tO,F= I.8O6,p=0.2t40
0.572
(MAM) AND
p
0.2224
0.0097
0.0635
p
0.7152
0.0270 *
0.0180 *
Coefficient
r
p
5.805
-0.492
1101
-1.816
0.2969
0.0994
0.162
0.597
0.5640
When regressing the body traits of preschool children (boys and girls) to MTI
and to 8W, no significant conthbution was detected.
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS
423
DISCUSSION
A significant negative contribution of MAM to weight of girls and boys at preschool age has been detected independently of either MTI or BW. Furthermore,
and also when controlling for MTI or BW, these results reveal a higher BMI in the
we-school girls of earlier-maturing mothers, which can be considered as a good
estimate of body fatness (i.e., the proportion of body mass fat, Deurenberg,
Weststrate, & Seidell, 1991).
A relationship between a woman’s amount of body fat and the onset of
menarche has previously been demonstrated (Ellison, 1982; Frisch, 1988; Frisch
& McArthur, 1974), young girls not entering puberty until they have reached a
critical ratio of body fat to muscle. Thus, at least for girls, a greater influence of
BMI at pre-school age on the future onset of menarche is to be expected.
Furthermore in these results, it is interesting to note that, when controlling for
BW, the MAM has a negative significant contribution in height at pre-school age
but only in boys.
The pubertal onset for boys has traditionally been associated with behavioral
factors and probably a bigger size (weight and height can be considered as estimates of body size) at pit-school age contributes to an early reproductive behavior,
(Capaldi, Crosby, & Stoolmiller, 1996).
Considering that children of earlier-maturing mothers probably also mature earlier, it can be expected that these children of the same age are physically further
developed than children of later-maturing mothers. Moffit, et al. (1992) have previously suggested that children of earlier-maturing mothers also matured earlier;
results from Wolanski’s study (1995) of Mexican schoolgirls also suggested this
possibility by reveaLing a correlation between the age at menarche of mothers and
daughters; and Gofin, et al. (1993) pointed out that early menstruating girls were
taller and heavier than non-menstruating girls already at six years old.
According to the results of this study, MAM is strongly related to those body
parameters that probably influence the children’s future reproductive strategies.
That is, in girls, the mother’s age at menarche is more closely related not only to
body weight but also to the store of fatness, whereas it is more related to body size
in boys.
Following the prediction of life-history theories, in a short-term reproductive
strategy low-quality offspring are more to be expected. The relationship between
early menarche of mothers and more physically developed children at preschool
age does not mean that these children will attain a better physical condition as
adults. In the authors’ opinion, advanced development at preschool age anticipates
the onset of puberty, which probably stops their growth. It has long been recognized that maturation is accompanied by a decrease in or cessation of— growth
in many organisms, and recent research corroborates the results of several previ
-
—
424
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTNE CHARACTERISTICS
ous studies that describe shorter statures and higher body mass indexes during
adulthood in early-maturing females (Kirchengast, Gruber, Sator, & Huber, 1998).
As regards family context, in Chisholm (1993), Pavlik pointed out that the period from five to seven years old is important for the development of the child’s
neuroendocrine phenotype, and early stress may be associated with high-mating
effort reproductive patLerfls. Belsky, et al. (1991) have proposed that the first five
to seven years of experience in the family enables a child to assess the availability
of resources and the durability of parental bonds as a basis to develop his or her
reproductive strategy. Ellis et al, (1999), suggest that the quality of fathers’ investment in the famiLy is the most important feature of the proximal family environment relative to daughters’ pubertal timing.
In spite of the importance of family experience in early childhood on future
reproductive strategies, the authors have not detected a significant contribution of
the context where children develop (MTI, i.e., time of maternal availability, birth
interval, arid family size) to the children’s body traits at pre-school age when controlling for both MAM or BW. Other authors (Kim, Smith, & Palermity, 1997;
Kim & Smith, 1998), although they found developmental links between childhood
stressors, onset of puberty, arid postpubertal reproductive behavior, consider that
early puberty and postpubertal sexual behavior might be more influenced by
intergenerational transmission of genetic characteristics.
Since birth weight might be considered as an outcome of maternal phenotype
(maternal effects) rather than of genetic constitution of the offspring, it might be
thought that the positive contribution of boys’ birth weight detected to height at
pre-school age when controlling for MAM, might suggest a maternal environment’s
influence during the prenatal period, at least for boys, in the determination of their
future reproductive strategy. Furthermore, in boys a positive correlation between
MAM and MIT was found, that is —later maturing mothers of boys present long
birth intervals and few offspring, suggesting a higher investment in boys than early
maturing mothers. Considering that the allocation of resources before birth (BW)
is related to the onset of boys’ puberty, this result could be supporting also, at least
in boys, the possibility of a maternal environmental influence in Lhe reproductive
strategy of their children. Thus, in boys, besides the genetic influence detected
(early or later maturing mothers having early or later maturing children respectively), an environmental influence has also been found.
Body traits irrespective of age are genetically and environmentally affected and
the contribution of each factor at each age is difficult to assess. Future research
might explore, for girls as well as for boys, models considering simultaneously
variables informative of the environment as well as those more genetically informative,
L
INFLUENCE OF MATERNAL REPRODUCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS
425
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Social Behavior and Personality
AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL
Volume 29
2001
Number 5
CONTENTS
Francisco Braza and Cristina San José, Estación Biólogica de Donana,
CiSC, Spain
Influence of maternal reproductive characteristics on the body traits of
preschool children
417
Nicolas Michinov, Université Blaise Pascal, France
When downward comparison produces negative affect: The sense of
control as a moderator
Mousa Alnabhan, Mutah University, Jordan, and Michael Harwell, 427
University of Minnesota. USA
Psychometric challenges in developing a college admission test for Jordan 445
Giovanni B. Moneta and Fanny Ho Yan Wong, The Chinese University of
Hong Kong
Construct validity of the Chinese adaptation of four thematic scales of the
personality research form
459
Ami Rokach, The institute for the Study and Treatment of Psycho-social Stress,
Toronto, Canada,,Miguel C. Moya, Universidad De Granada, Spain,
Tricia Orzeck, The institute for the Study and Treatment of Psychosocial
Stress, Toronto, Canada, and Francisca Exposito, Universidad De
Granada, Spain
Loneliness in North America and Spain
477
M. Posse, Huddinge University Hospital, Sweden, C-E. Häkanson,
Occupational Health Service, Sweden, and T. Hâllstrom, Huddinge
University Hospital, Sweden
Alexithymia and psychiatric symptoms in a population of nursery workers:
A study using the 20 item Toronto alexithymia scale
491
Huda Ayyash-Abdo, Lebanese American University, NY, USA.
Individualism and collectivism: The case of Lebanon
503
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C
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