Baby’s eating habits begin in the womb

16 August, 2007:

Pregnant women who overeat by increasing their consumption of fatty and sugary foods could put their unborn children at risk of obesity.

Breast-feeding mothers who eat a lot of junk food could also increase their children’s chances of weight problems in later life.

Eating habits of babies can be programmed even as they are in the womb by their mother’s own diets, a study published in the British Journal of Nutrition suggests.

Children who are exposed to “maternal junk food” in the womb or while breast-feeding may have more difficulty resisting unhealthy diet choices when they get older.

The study was funded by the Wellcome Trust, the United Kingdom’s largest charity.

A study by the Harvard University released earlier in 2007 had showed that women who gain excessive weight while expecting were four times more likely to bear children who were overweight by age 3 than those who remained slimmer during gestation.

Stephanie Bayol, of the Royal Veterinary College in London, said: “Our study has shown that eating large quantities of junk food when pregnant and breast-feeding could impair the normal control of appetite and promote an exacerbated taste for junk food in offspring. This could send offspring on the road to obesity and make the task of teaching healthy eating habits in children even more challenging.”

The research team found that rats fed on a diet high in processed foods such as doughnuts and crisps during pregnancy and lactation gave birth to offspring that overate and had a preference for foods rich in fat, sugar and salt compared with rats on a regular diet.

Rats that were exposed in the womb to junk foods were born lighter than average, but quickly put on weight. Ten weeks after weaning, their body mass was 32% higher for females and 22% higher for males, compared with the offspring of normal-diet mothers.

Dr Bayol’s team argues that similar trends could be expected in humans. Neil Stickland, co-author of the study, said: “The government of the United Kingdom is trying to encourage healthier eating habits in schools, but our research shows that healthy eating habits need to start during the foetal and suckling life of an individual. Giving children better school dinners is very good, but more needs to be done to raise awareness in pregnant and breast-feeding women as well. Future mothers should be aware that pregnancy and lactation are not the time to overindulge on fatty-sugary treats on the misguided assumption that they are eating for two.”

Adam Balen, Professor of Reproductive Medicine at Leeds teaching hospitals, told The Times newspaper that the new study reinforced the importance of maternal diet during pregnancy for the lifelong health of a child.