title: Influence of maternal obesity on the long-term health of offspring.
abstract: In addition to immediate implications for pregnancy complications, increasing evidence implicates maternal obesity as a major determinant of offspring health during childhood and later adult life. Observational studies provide evidence for effects of maternal obesity on her offspring's risks of obesity, coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and asthma. Maternal obesity could also lead to poorer cognitive performance and increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, including cerebral palsy. Preliminary evidence suggests potential implications for immune and infectious-disease-related outcomes. Insights from experimental studies support causal effects of maternal obesity on offspring outcomes, which are mediated at least partly through changes in epigenetic processes, such as alterations in DNA methylation, and perhaps through alterations in the gut microbiome. Although the offspring of obese women who lose weight before pregnancy have a reduced risk of obesity, few controlled intervention studies have been done in which maternal obesity is reversed and the consequences for offspring have been examined. Because the long-term effects of maternal obesity could have profound public health implications, there is an urgent need for studies on causality, underlying mechanisms, and effective interventions to reverse the epidemic of obesity in women of childbearing age and to mitigate consequences for offspring.
authors.affiliation: MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Unit and NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre, University of Southampton and University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton, UK. Electronic address: kmg@mrc.soton.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Keith M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Godfrey
authors.affiliation: Endocrinology Unit, University/BHF Centre for Cardiovascular Science, University of Edinburgh, Queen's Medical Research Institute, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK.
authors.forename: Rebecca M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Reynolds
authors.affiliation: School of Paediatrics and Child Health, and Telethon Kids Institute, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia.
authors.forename: Susan L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Prescott
authors.affiliation: London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK; College of Medicine, University of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi.
authors.forename: Moffat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nyirenda
authors.affiliation: Departments of Epidemiology and Pediatrics, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Vincent W V
authors.initials: VW
authors.lastname: Jaddoe
authors.affiliation: Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland; Folkhälsan Research Center, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Johan G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Eriksson
authors.affiliation: Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore; Department of Psychological Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; National University Health System, Singapore, Singaporre.
authors.forename: Birit F P
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Broekman
mesh_terms: D032721:Adult Children; D001249:Asthma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D065886:Neurodevelopmental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D064887:Observational Studies as Topic / Q000379:methods; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013997:Time Factors