The impact of maternal health and habits are the topic of multiple research studies. One of the newest studies from researchers in Canada examines the impact of maternal factors and characteristics of pregnancy on cardiometabolic traits in newborns.
The study included data collected from 857 mothers and 901 infants born to those mothers. The data was broken into five categories based on individual or sets of traits. The five categories included glycemia, blood pressure, and triglycerides.
Researchers noted gestational age at birth affected multiple cardiometabolic traits, including insulin, glucose, body fat, cord blood lipids, and blood pressure. Maternal age, high pre-pregnancy weight, weight gain during pregnancy and saturated to polyunsaturated fat consumption during pregnancy all affected cardiometabolic traits in infants as did maternal hypertension, triglycerides, HDL levels, and the weight of the placenta compared to fetal weight.
Conclusion: When gestational age at birth is taken out of consideration, various maternal factors, including age, weight, diet, and lifestyle play a significant role in altering cardiometabolic traits in infants.
Source: Morrison KM, Anand SS, Yusuf S, Atkinson SA, Schulze KM, Rao-Melacini P, McQueen MJ, McDonald S, Persadie R, Hunter B, Bourgeois J, Jansen JW, Teo KK; the FAMILY (Family Atherosclerosis Monitoring In Early Life) Study Investigators. Maternal and Pregnancy-Related Predictors of Cardiometabolic Traits in Newborns. PLoS One. 2013;8(2):e55815. Epub 2013 Feb 13.
