Everything changes when a woman finds out she is pregnant, especially diet. Sometimes for the better, and for those riddled with a crazy ice cream Sunday constant craving, sometimes for the worst. It’s been known for some time that a mother’s diet during pregnancy can affect a baby’s health well into adolescence. A new study furthers that stance by revealing how maternal diet interacts with genes.
Research funded by the Wellcome Trust and British Heart Foundation (BHF) discovered that an expecting mum’s diet can interact with the genes her child inherits influencing the severity or type of potential birth defect. The dietary culprit? A high fat diet both before and during pregnancy may inadvertently pose a health risk to offspring.
The most common birth defect is congenital heart disease and previous research has shown that mothers who are overweight or diabetic have babies with a higher risk of congenital heart disease as well as other birth defects. Of particular interest was a serious type of heart defect called atrial isomerism, where right-left heart asymmetry is disturbed. With this previous knowledge in tow, researchers set out to test the effects of high fat diets.
Healthy mice were compared with those lacking a gene called Cited2, as Cited2 deficiency results in heart defects in both humans and mice. Both sets of mice were fed a high fat diet before and during pregnancy and the offspring were studied using MRI (magnetic resonance imaging); with results being measured against a control group of mice who ate a healthy diet.
The mice with Cited2 deficiency doubled the offspring’s risk of atrial isomerism in addition to a sevenfold increase in cleft palate risk when fed a high fat diet. However, the mice that also ate a high fat diet but were not deficient in the gene had genetically normal offspring. Researchers believe it is the combination of genetics and a high fat diet that was responsible; as that when both variables were present, the gene responsible for normal heart development was suppressed.
What this Means to Mums
Don’t get too worried about indulging your craving for ice cream just yet. A balanced diet with lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, lean protein and dairy is healthiest for everyone at anytime; along with avoiding excessive amounts of fat. This study is actually quite pivotal in the science world because it showed, for the first time, that gene-environment interaction can affect embryonic development. There have been lots of studies highlighting effects of a mother’s diet on her baby, and all arrows point in the same direction – maintain a well balanced diet. For some women, even those super health conscience moms, pregnancy becomes a time to let loose and overindulge which really isn’t recommended for 9 months straight. This doesn’t mean you can’t indulge in those cravings for a scoop of ice cream or handful (s) of potato chips- just keep it in moderation.
Tags: expecting, pregnancy diet
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The hidden time bomb in all of this is that as peoplefight to downsize obesity the resultant effect of all of this then emerges as fitness levels tightens up with no available exercise being taken and more disease becoming prevalent…If Central Governments don’t take a grip soon then we could be facing an over weight problem.
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