Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
7280459 | Brain, Behavior, and Immunity | 2016 | 6 Pages |
Abstract
Inflammation influences cognitive development in infants and older adults, however, how inflammation may affect academic development during childhood and adolescence remains to be elucidated. This study aimed to examine the association between inflammatory biomarkers and academic performance in children and adolescents. A total of 494 youth (238 girls) aged 10.6 ± 3.4 years participated in the study. Four inflammatory biomarkers were selected: C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and white blood cell (WBC) count. An inflammatory index was created using the above mentioned biomarkers. Academic performance was assessed through schools records. Results showed that three of the four inflammatory biomarkers (CRP, IL-6 and WBC) and the inflammatory index were negatively associated with all academic indicators (β values ranging from â0.094 to â0.217, all P < 0.05) independent of confounders including body fat percentage. Indeed, youth in the highest tertile of the inflammatory index had significantly lower scores in all academic indicators compared with youth in the middle tertile (scores ranging from â0.578 to â0.344) and in the lowest tertile (scores ranging from â0.678 to â0.381). In conclusion, inflammation may impair academic performance independently of body fat levels in youth. Our results are of importance because the consequences of childhood and adolescence inflammation tend to continue into adulthood. Lifestyle interventions in youth may be promising in reducing levels of inflammation beyond the reduction in body fat in order to achieve cognitive benefits.
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Authors
Irene Esteban-Cornejo, David Martinez-Gomez, Sonia Gómez-MartÃnez, Juan del Campo-Vecino, Jorge Fernández-Santos, Jose Castro-Piñero, Ascensión Marcos, Oscar L. Veiga, UP & DOWN Study Group UP & DOWN Study Group,