Andrew M Prentice
Biographic Data
| ID | 4284143 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Andrew M Prentice |
| GIVEN NAMES | Andrew M |
| FAMILY NAME | Prentice |
| SIGNATURE | PRENTICE A M |
| AFFILIATIONS | London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-5389-451X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 32 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 64 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 32 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1995 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2024 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Religious Involvement Is Associated With Higher Fertility and Lower Maternal Investment, but More Alloparental Support Among Gambian Mothers
OBJECTIVES: Human childrearing is cooperative, with women often able to achieve relatively high fertility through help from many individuals. Previous work has documented tremendous socioecological variation in who supports women in childrearing, but less is known about the intracultural correlates of variation in allomaternal support. In the highly religious, high-fertility setting of The Gambia, we studied whether religious mothers have more ch…
Epidemiology of multimorbidity in low-income countries of sub-Saharan Africa
We investigated prevalence and demographic characteristics of adults living with multimorbidity (≥2 long-term conditions) in three low-income countries of sub-Saharan Africa, using secondary population-level data from four cohorts; Malawi (urban & rural), The Gambia (rural) and Uganda (rural). Information on; measured hypertension, diabetes and obesity was available in all cohorts; measured hypercholesterolaemia and HIV and self-reported asthma w…
Human milk immune factors, maternal nutritional status, and infant sex
OBJECTIVES: Breastfeeding is an energetically costly and intense form of human parental investment, providing sole-source nutrition in early infancy and bioactive components, including immune factors. Given the energetic cost of lactation, milk factors may be subject to tradeoffs, and variation in concentrations have been explored utilizing the Trivers-Willard hypothesis. As human milk immune factors are critical to developing immune system and p…
Changes in Climate Vulnerability and Projected Water Stress of The Gambia's Food Supply Between 1988 and 2018
Background: The coexistence of under- and overnutrition is of increasing public health concern in The Gambia. Fruits, vegetables and pulses are essential to healthy and sustainable diets, preventing micronutrient deficiencies and non-communicable diseases, while cereals significantly contribute to energy intake. However, environmental changes are predicted to intensify, reducing future yields of these crops if agricultural productivity and resili…
Grassroots and Youth-Led Climate Solutions From The Gambia
Climate change and environmental degradation are among the greatest threats to human health. Youth campaigners have very effectively focused global attention on the crisis, however children from the Global South are often under-represented (sometimes deliberately) in the dialogue. In The Gambia, West Africa, the impacts of climate change are already being directly experienced by the population, and this will worsen in coming years. There is stron…
Adherence to EAT-Lancet dietary recommendations for health and sustainability in the Gambia
Facilitating dietary change is pivotal to improving population health, increasing food system resilience, and minimizing adverse impacts on the environment, but assessment of the current 'status-quo' and identification of bottlenecks for improvement has been lacking to date. We assessed deviation of the Gambian diet from the EAT-Lancet guidelines for healthy and sustainable diets and identified leverage points to improve nutritional and planetary…
Nutritional status and adult mortality in a mid-20 th century Gambian population
Measures of nutritional status are often used as markers of health, at both individual- and population-level. Different measures of nutritional status–such as height or weight, for example,–may have different associations with health outcomes because they reflect both current nutritional status and the accumulation of past health experiences, but the weighting of past and present experiences differs between different measures. Here, we present an…
Seasonal modulation of antibody response to diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccination in infants
Infant antibody response to the primary dose of the DTP vaccine was influenced by both season of pregnancy and infancy, although effects were diminished following three doses. Environmental exposures, including nutrition, to both the mother and infant are hypothesised as likely drivers of these seasonal effects
Ethnic inequalities in older adults bowel cancer awareness
Awareness of bowel cancer symptoms, risk factors and screening varies by ethnicity. Interventions should be targeted towards specific groups for whom awareness of screening and risk factors is low
A Novel method for the identification and quantification of weight faltering
OBJECTIVE: We describe a new method for identifying and quantifying the magnitude and rate of short-term weight faltering episodes, and assess how (a) these episodes relate to broader growth outcomes, and (b) different data collection intervals influence the quantification of weight faltering. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We apply this method to longitudinal growth data collected every other day across the first year of life in Gambian infants (n = 124…
Nutritional status and disease severity in children acutely presenting to a primary health clinic in rural Gambia
In this population-based cohort of young children in rural Gambia, wasting was associated with disease severity in a dose-dependent manner. Further research is needed into strategies to identify and reach these children with effective interventions to improve their nutritional status
Household composition and the infant fecal microbiome
OBJECTIVES: Establishment and development of the infant gastrointestinal microbiome (GIM) varies cross-culturally and is thought to be influenced by factors such as gestational age, birth mode, diet, and antibiotic exposure. However, there is little data as to how the composition of infants' households may play a role, particularly from a cross-cultural perspective. Here, we examined relationships between infant fecal microbiome (IFM) diversity/c…
Adolescence and the next generation
Adolescent growth and social development shape the early development of offspring from preconception through to the post-partum period through distinct processes in males and females. At a time of great change in the forces shaping adolescence, including the timing of parenthood, investments in today’s adolescents, the largest cohort in human history, will yield great dividends for future generations.
Zinc as an adjunct therapy in the management of severe pneumonia among Gambian children
BACKGROUND: The benefit of zinc as an adjunct therapy for severe pneumonia is not established. We assessed the benefit of adjunct zinc therapy for severe pneumonia in children and determined whether the study children were zinc deficient. METHODS: This was a randomized, parallel group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with an allocation ratio of 1:1 conducted in children with severe pneumonia to evaluate the efficacy of daily zinc as an adj…
Impaired growth in rural Gambian infants exposed to aflatoxin
This study found a small but significant effect of aflatoxin exposure on the growth of Gambian infants. This relationship is not apparently explained by aflatoxin induced changes in the IGF-axis
Adherence to home fortification with micronutrient powders in Kenyan pre-school children
The trial was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov ( NCT02073149 ) on 25 February 2014
The influence of maternal psychosocial circumstances and physical environment on the risk of severe wasting in rural Gambian infants
In rural Gambia, inappropriate infant feeding practices were associated with severe wasting in infants. Additionally, adverse psychosocial circumstances and infant feeding difficulties constrain mothers from practising the recommended child care practices. Interventions that promote maternal resilience through gender empowerment, prioritising maternal psychosocial support and encouraging the involvement of fathers in infant and child care promoti…
Nutrition in adolescents
Adolescence is the period of development that begins at puberty and ends in early adulthood. Most commonly, adolescence is divided into three developmental periods: early adolescence (10–14 years of age), late adolescence (15–19 years of age), and young adulthood (20–24 years of age). Adolescence is marked by physical and sexual maturation, social and economic independence, development of identity, acquisition of skills needed to carry out adult …
Association of prenatal lipid‐based nutritional supplementation with fetal growth in rural Gambia
Prenatal supplementation with protein-energy (PE) and/or multiple-micronutrients (MMNs) may improve fetal growth, but trials of lipid-based nutritional supplements (LNSs) have reported inconsistent results. We conducted a post-hoc analysis of non-primary outcomes in a trial in Gambia, with the aim to test the associations of LNS with fetal growth and explore how efficacy varies depending on nutritional status. The sample comprised 620 pregnant wo…
Maternal perception of malnutrition among infants using verbal and pictorial methods in Kenya
Objective To compare mothers’ perceptions of their own infants’ nutritional status with anthropometric indicators of undernutrition. Design A qualitative study and cross-sectional quantitative survey. The qualitative study involved developing tools to assess mother’s perception. Two methods of verbal description and a pictorial scale were developed. The quantitative survey involved measuring maternal perception and comparing it with the anthropom…
Endocrine responses, weight change, and energy sparing mechanisms during Ramadan among Gambian adolescent women
Even using energy sparing behaviors, adolescent women enter negative energy balance when Ramadan and the agricultural season co-occur. Metabolic physiology shows a transient response to high glycemic index foods consumed at night. Older and larger individuals sustain greater losses during Ramadan
Critical windows for nutritional interventions against stunting
Birth weight, season of birth and postnatal growth do not predict levels of systemic inflammation in gambian adults
OBJECTIVES: Studies testing whether systemic inflammation might lie on the causal pathway between aberrant fetal and post-natal growth patterns and later cardiovascular disease have been inconclusive, possibly due to the use of single markers of unknown predictive value. We used repeated measures of a comprehensive set of inflammatory markers to investigate the relationship between early life measures and systemic inflammation in an African popul…
Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and the evolutionary paradox of the polycystic ovary syndrome
Worldwide, the high prevalence of the Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), a heritable cause of ovarian infertility, is an evolutionary paradox, which provides insight into the susceptibility of well‐fed human populations to cardiovascular disease and diabetes. We propose that PCOS, Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and the Metabolic Syndrome are modern phenotypic expressions of a metabolic genotype attuned to the dietary and energetic conditions of the Pleisto…
Body fat reference curves for children
Energy Density and its Role in the Control of Food Intake
Long-term effects of ad libitum low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets on body weight and serum lipids in overweight subjects with metabolic syndrome
A low-fat, high-polysaccharide diet in overweight individuals with abnormal intermediary metabolism led to moderate weight loss and some improvement in serum cholesterol. Increasing simple carbohydrates did not promote weight gain, but nor was there improvement in body weight or lipid profile.
Household composition and the infant fecal microbiome
OBJECTIVES: Establishment and development of the infant gastrointestinal microbiome (GIM) varies cross-culturally and is thought to be influenced by factors such as gestational age, birth mode, diet, and antibiotic exposure. However, there is little data as to how the composition of infants' households may play a role, particularly from a cross-cultural perspective. Here, we examined relationships between infant fecal microbiome (IFM) diversity/c…
Nutritional status and adult mortality in a mid-20 th century Gambian population
Measures of nutritional status are often used as markers of health, at both individual- and population-level. Different measures of nutritional status–such as height or weight, for example,–may have different associations with health outcomes because they reflect both current nutritional status and the accumulation of past health experiences, but the weighting of past and present experiences differs between different measures. Here, we present an…
Is the frequency of having an eye test associated with socioeconomic factors? A national cross sectional study in British elderly
The National Diet and Nutrition Survey: Peo-ple Aged 65 Years and Over (NDNS) recruiteda representative sample of people aged 65 yearsor over from 80 diVerent postcode sectors ofmainland Britain. The sample included sub-jects from private households as well as frominstitutions such as nursing homes (not geriat-ric hospitals); the fieldwork for this survey wascarried out in 1994/1995. Further details onsubject selection and procedures are presente…
Obesity in Britain
The prevalence of clinical obesity in Britain has doubled in the past decade. The Health of the Nation initiative has set ambitious targets for reversing the trend in recognition of the serious health burden which will accrue, but efforts to develop prevention and treatment strategies are handicapped by uncertainty as to the aetiology of the problem. It is generally assumed that ready access to highly palatable foods induces excess consumption an…
Energy Density and its Role in the Control of Food Intake
Is the frequency of having an eye test associated with socioeconomic factors? A national cross sectional study in British elderly
The National Diet and Nutrition Survey: Peo-ple Aged 65 Years and Over (NDNS) recruiteda representative sample of people aged 65 yearsor over from 80 diVerent postcode sectors ofmainland Britain. The sample included sub-jects from private households as well as frominstitutions such as nursing homes (not geriat-ric hospitals); the fieldwork for this survey wascarried out in 1994/1995. Further details onsubject selection and procedures are presente…
Obesity and Undernutrition and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Rural and Urban Gambian Communities
Objectives. This study documented the prevalence of and cardiovascular risk factors associated with obesity and undernutrition in the Gambia. Methods. Adults (≥15 years; N = 5373) from rural and urban areas completed a questionnaire; their height, weight, and waist and hip circumferences were measured, and their cardiovascular risk factors were assessed. Results. Prevalence of undernutrition (body mass index 2 ) was 18.0%; all strata of society w…
Long-term effects of ad libitum low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets on body weight and serum lipids in overweight subjects with metabolic syndrome
A low-fat, high-polysaccharide diet in overweight individuals with abnormal intermediary metabolism led to moderate weight loss and some improvement in serum cholesterol. Increasing simple carbohydrates did not promote weight gain, but nor was there improvement in body weight or lipid profile.
Macronutrients as sources of food energy
This background paper considers the extent to which the development of new recommendations for dietary energy requirements needs to account for the macronutrient (fat, carbohydrate, protein and alcohol) profiles of different diets. The issues are discussed from the dual perspectives of avoiding under-nutrition and obesity. It is shown that, in practice, human metabolic processes can adapt to a wide range of fuel supply by altering fuel selection.…
Body fat reference curves for children
The emerging epidemic of obesity in developing countries
Thirty years ago international nutritionists were focussing on childhood malnutrition, the 'protein gap' and how to feed the world's burgeoning population, and medical services in the developing world were concentrated on the fight against infectious diseases. Today the World Health Organization (WHO) finds itself needing to deal with the new pandemic of obesity and its accompanying non-communicable diseases (NCDs) while the challenge of childhoo…
Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and the evolutionary paradox of the polycystic ovary syndrome
Worldwide, the high prevalence of the Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), a heritable cause of ovarian infertility, is an evolutionary paradox, which provides insight into the susceptibility of well‐fed human populations to cardiovascular disease and diabetes. We propose that PCOS, Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and the Metabolic Syndrome are modern phenotypic expressions of a metabolic genotype attuned to the dietary and energetic conditions of the Pleisto…
Critical windows for nutritional interventions against stunting
Birth weight, season of birth and postnatal growth do not predict levels of systemic inflammation in gambian adults
OBJECTIVES: Studies testing whether systemic inflammation might lie on the causal pathway between aberrant fetal and post-natal growth patterns and later cardiovascular disease have been inconclusive, possibly due to the use of single markers of unknown predictive value. We used repeated measures of a comprehensive set of inflammatory markers to investigate the relationship between early life measures and systemic inflammation in an African popul…
Endocrine responses, weight change, and energy sparing mechanisms during Ramadan among Gambian adolescent women
Even using energy sparing behaviors, adolescent women enter negative energy balance when Ramadan and the agricultural season co-occur. Metabolic physiology shows a transient response to high glycemic index foods consumed at night. Older and larger individuals sustain greater losses during Ramadan
Maternal perception of malnutrition among infants using verbal and pictorial methods in Kenya
Objective To compare mothers’ perceptions of their own infants’ nutritional status with anthropometric indicators of undernutrition. Design A qualitative study and cross-sectional quantitative survey. The qualitative study involved developing tools to assess mother’s perception. Two methods of verbal description and a pictorial scale were developed. The quantitative survey involved measuring maternal perception and comparing it with the anthropom…
Association of prenatal lipid‐based nutritional supplementation with fetal growth in rural Gambia
Prenatal supplementation with protein-energy (PE) and/or multiple-micronutrients (MMNs) may improve fetal growth, but trials of lipid-based nutritional supplements (LNSs) have reported inconsistent results. We conducted a post-hoc analysis of non-primary outcomes in a trial in Gambia, with the aim to test the associations of LNS with fetal growth and explore how efficacy varies depending on nutritional status. The sample comprised 620 pregnant wo…
Nutrition in adolescents
Adolescence is the period of development that begins at puberty and ends in early adulthood. Most commonly, adolescence is divided into three developmental periods: early adolescence (10–14 years of age), late adolescence (15–19 years of age), and young adulthood (20–24 years of age). Adolescence is marked by physical and sexual maturation, social and economic independence, development of identity, acquisition of skills needed to carry out adult …
Adolescence and the next generation
Adolescent growth and social development shape the early development of offspring from preconception through to the post-partum period through distinct processes in males and females. At a time of great change in the forces shaping adolescence, including the timing of parenthood, investments in today’s adolescents, the largest cohort in human history, will yield great dividends for future generations.
Zinc as an adjunct therapy in the management of severe pneumonia among Gambian children
BACKGROUND: The benefit of zinc as an adjunct therapy for severe pneumonia is not established. We assessed the benefit of adjunct zinc therapy for severe pneumonia in children and determined whether the study children were zinc deficient. METHODS: This was a randomized, parallel group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with an allocation ratio of 1:1 conducted in children with severe pneumonia to evaluate the efficacy of daily zinc as an adj…
Impaired growth in rural Gambian infants exposed to aflatoxin
This study found a small but significant effect of aflatoxin exposure on the growth of Gambian infants. This relationship is not apparently explained by aflatoxin induced changes in the IGF-axis
Adherence to home fortification with micronutrient powders in Kenyan pre-school children
The trial was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov ( NCT02073149 ) on 25 February 2014
The influence of maternal psychosocial circumstances and physical environment on the risk of severe wasting in rural Gambian infants
In rural Gambia, inappropriate infant feeding practices were associated with severe wasting in infants. Additionally, adverse psychosocial circumstances and infant feeding difficulties constrain mothers from practising the recommended child care practices. Interventions that promote maternal resilience through gender empowerment, prioritising maternal psychosocial support and encouraging the involvement of fathers in infant and child care promoti…
Nutritional status and disease severity in children acutely presenting to a primary health clinic in rural Gambia
In this population-based cohort of young children in rural Gambia, wasting was associated with disease severity in a dose-dependent manner. Further research is needed into strategies to identify and reach these children with effective interventions to improve their nutritional status
Household composition and the infant fecal microbiome
OBJECTIVES: Establishment and development of the infant gastrointestinal microbiome (GIM) varies cross-culturally and is thought to be influenced by factors such as gestational age, birth mode, diet, and antibiotic exposure. However, there is little data as to how the composition of infants' households may play a role, particularly from a cross-cultural perspective. Here, we examined relationships between infant fecal microbiome (IFM) diversity/c…
Seasonal modulation of antibody response to diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccination in infants
Infant antibody response to the primary dose of the DTP vaccine was influenced by both season of pregnancy and infancy, although effects were diminished following three doses. Environmental exposures, including nutrition, to both the mother and infant are hypothesised as likely drivers of these seasonal effects
Ethnic inequalities in older adults bowel cancer awareness
Awareness of bowel cancer symptoms, risk factors and screening varies by ethnicity. Interventions should be targeted towards specific groups for whom awareness of screening and risk factors is low
A Novel method for the identification and quantification of weight faltering
OBJECTIVE: We describe a new method for identifying and quantifying the magnitude and rate of short-term weight faltering episodes, and assess how (a) these episodes relate to broader growth outcomes, and (b) different data collection intervals influence the quantification of weight faltering. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We apply this method to longitudinal growth data collected every other day across the first year of life in Gambian infants (n = 124…
Medicine (27 works) · Environmental health (14 works) · Internal Medicine (13 works) · Biology (12 works) · Child Nutrition and Water Access (12 works) · Population (12 works) · Pediatrics (10 works) · Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet (9 works) · Demography (6 works) · Epidemiology (6 works)