Health: inadequate diets during pregnancy can put children on the path to weight gain and obesity

Mothers who follow an unhealthy diet during pregnancy may be putting their children on the path to weight gain and obesity, a study warned.

Researchers from the United States investigated the links between a future mother’s diet and her children’s growth rates between birth and adolescence.

The team found that a pregnancy diet rich in inflammatory foods, including sugars, artificial trans fats and processed meats, was associated with greater weight gain in children between three and ten years of age.

Previous studies have shown that weight gain in early childhood is related to an increased risk of obesity later in childhood, as well as in adolescence and adulthood.

Weight problems can begin in pregnancy, the team said, since the pathways that program metabolism, growth and eating behaviors are sensitive to intrauterine influences.

The team recommends that pregnant women consider a Mediterranean diet, which is rich in plant foods, fish and unsaturated fats, has a low inflammatory potential and can benefit the health of the mother and child.

However, the researchers cautioned that individual nutritional needs may vary and women should consult their doctor to choose the most appropriate diet.

“To date, studies linking maternal nutrition during pregnancy to the growth of offspring have focused on the newborn and early childhood period, with limited data extending to infancy,” said the author of the article Carmen Monthé-Drèze.

“We wanted to better understand the dynamic growth changes that occur from childhood to adolescence as a result of maternal nutrition during pregnancy,” added the neonatologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

“We wanted to specifically assess whether there are distinct periods between birth and adolescence when rates of weight gain are most susceptible to the effects of nutrition programming on pregnancy.”

In their study, Dr. Monthé-Drèze and colleagues analyzed data from 1,459 mother and child pairs collected by Project Viva – an ongoing study on maternal and child health conducted at the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute in Massachusetts.

During their respective pregnancies, each mother was asked to complete questionnaires about her food intake, which the researchers interpreted through the lens of three different dietary indices.

These included the Dietary Inflammatory Index, the Mediterranean diet score and the Alternative Healthy Eating Index for Pregnancy.

After delivery, each child was weighed and measured several times between birth and adolescence, from which body mass index (BMI) values ​​were calculated.

Finally, the researchers analyzed how each mother’s food index scores were associated with their children’s growth trajectory.

“Maternal nutrition during pregnancy can have a long-term impact on children’s weight trajectories,” said Dr. Monthé-Drèze.

In addition, she added, the findings suggest “there are specific periods of development when nutrition during pregnancy can influence the growth of offspring.”

‘We found that a pregnancy diet with greater inflammatory potential was associated with faster rates of BMI growth in children between three and ten years of age.’

We also found that lower adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet during pregnancy was associated with higher BMI trajectories until adolescence. ‘

According to the team, mothers’ scores on the Alternative Healthy Eating Index did not seem to predict their children’s growth trajectory.

“It is important to advise women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant about the importance of a healthy diet during pregnancy,” said Dr. Monthé-Drèze.

“In particular, women who are pregnant or may become pregnant should consider a Mediterranean diet, which can not only benefit their own health, but can also help their children maintain a healthy weight.”

A Mediterranean-style diet, the team explained, has a low inflammatory potential and is rich in vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, fish with a low mercury content and good quality oils, such as extra virgin olive oil.

It provides an important source of vitamin D, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and other nutrients that have been shown to be beneficial to the health of the offspring.

“Research has shown that the foods we eat during pregnancy can influence the growing child’s metabolism, as well as their behaviors and eating preferences,” explained Dr. Monthé-Drèze.

“Furthermore, the food choices that women make during pregnancy are probably similar to the food choices they offer their children,” he added.

‘Therefore, it is conceivable that maternal nutrition during pregnancy could be related to long-term weight problems in the offspring.’

‘Therefore, further research is needed to better understand the relationship between the maternal diet during pregnancy and the child’s BMI and patterns of weight gain.’

The team also suggested that doctors should assess mothers’ eating habits during pregnancy to identify children who may be at high risk for weight gain.

In addition, they should encourage nutritious food choices to support a healthy weight during infancy, childhood and adolescence, they added.

“As scientists and as a society as a whole, we have been unable to stem the rising tide of childhood obesity,” said Dr. Monthé-Drèze.

This failure, she added, “costs mothers and children dearly.”

“There is reason to be optimistic about the future – however, we must conceptualize the problem differently in order to solve it.”

The full results of the study were published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.