Scientists have uncovered the link between a mother’s nutrition during her pregnancy and her child’s risk to be obese. The international study led by researchers from the University of Southampton included teams from Singapore and New Zealand. Their results show that during pregnancy, the diet of a mother could modify the function of her unborn child’s DNA. The process is referred to as epigenetic change and could lead to a child having tendency to lay down a lot more fat.
Essentially, the study reveals that this tendency is independent of how fat or slim is the mother and the weight of the child at birth. According to the study’s leader, University of Southampton Professor of Epidemiology and Human Development Keith Godfrey, they were able to show for the very first time the susceptibility of one to be obese is not simply due to one’s lifestyle and genes but is also triggered by influences present during the development of the baby in the womb as well as the foods the mother consumed.
He adds that the nutrition of the mother could cause critical epigenetic changes which could contribute to the risk of her offspring to obese during childhood.
Researchers gauged epigenetic changes in almost 300 children at birth and it was evident that these predicted their extent of being obese at age six or nine.
Researchers were similarly surprised with the effect’s size as the magnitude of how fat the children were varied however the epigenetic change seen at birth gave researchers the opportunity to predict 25% of such a variation.
The study was mainly funded by the MRC or the UK Medical Research Council, the UK Arthritis Research, the National Institute for Health Research, University of Southampton and WellChild (or Children Nationwide). Epigenetic changes alter the DNA’s functions without modifying the DNA sequence received from the parents. It could also influence how one responds to lifestyle factors such as exercise and diet.
Professor Godfrey reveals that this study shows that actions made to halt childhood obesity must be focused on improving the nutrition of the mother as well as the development of her baby inside her womb. These new epigenetic measurements could prove to be useful in monitoring a child’s health.
One of the research team, Director of the University of Southampton’s Human Development and Health Unit Mark Hanson, explains that the study offers compelling evidence that such epigenetic changes explain the connection between a poor beginning to life and risk to later diseases. It also makes strong the case for women who are of reproductive age to have easy access to education, nutrition and lifestyle support in order to better the health of the succeeding generation as well as decrease the risk of certain conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.
Sir Peter Gluckman FRS, research team member from the University of Auckland’s Liggins Institute as well as the Singapore Institute of Clinical Sciences adds that the study offers compelling proof that simply concentrating on interventions during one’s adult life will not change a chronic disease’s epidemic not just in developed societies but also in populations which belong in the low socio-ecnomic group.
The study team is included in an international consortium which involves the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Universities of Southampton and Singapore, AgResearch New Zealand, University of Southampton and the Medical Research Council Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit. Director of the MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit Cyrus Cooper explains that the population-based studies of the MRC have shown that factors in one’s early life influence the risk of having diseases years later. The mechanisms of how this is seen opens up avenues for interventions and medical research.
Source: New Link Between Mother’s pregnancy diet and offspring’s chances of obesity found
