A new study published in The Journal of Physiology has shown that babies born to mothers who consumed a high-fat, high-sugar diet before and during pregnancy may be at greater risk of developing heart disease and diabetes later in life.
The study used female baboons to determine the effects of a high-fat, high-sugar diet on their unborn babies. About nine months before conception, the baboons were randomized to consume either a high-fat, high-sugar diet or a normal diet. Before they were born, tissue samples were taken from the babies of both groups. These tissue samples were used to determine the effects of the two diets on the babies’ metabolism and health.
The results showed that the babies of the mothers that were fed a high-fat, high-sugar diet had altered levels of a thyroid hormone that is essential for the development of the fetal heart. The babies of these mothers also showed an increased likelihood of developing insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes and cardiovascular disease. In spite of these differences, the babies in the two groups were born with similar birth weights.
The authors stated that the observed disruption of a critical thyroid hormone, the active thyroid hormone T3, can lead fetal hearts to develop differently than they would otherwise. The high-fat, high-sugar diet also seemed to disrupt molecular pathways involved in insulin signaling and glucose uptake. All of these changes could potentially lead to heart problems and metabolic problems, such as diabetes, later in a child’s life. These results reiterate the critical importance of maternal nutrition for the health of both the mother and the baby and suggest that babies born to mothers with unhealthy diets should undergo a cardiometabolic health screening early in life.
Sources: Science Daily, The Journal of Physiology
