 News
1st July 2008
Junk food in pregnancy could cause lasting ill healthUnborn
children could be condemned to a lifetime of ill health by their mothers gorging
on junk food during pregnancy, researchers report today. Such mothers put
their child at greater risk of obesity, heart disease and diabetes in the years
to come, they suggest. Researcher Dr Stephanie Bayol said: "We always
say, 'You are what you eat'. In fact, it may also be true that, 'You are what
your mother ate'." Dr Bayol, of the Royal Veterinary College in London,
looked at the effect of maternal diet on almost 150 baby rats. Half of
the mother animals were given normal rat food, while the others also had access
to junk food, including jam doughnuts, chocolate chip muffins, marshmallows and
chocolate. Tests showed the junk food pups suffered a host of health problems
that lasted into adulthood. They had high levels of cholesterol and other
fats linked to heart disease. Blood sugar levels and insulin were also
elevated, raising their chances of developing of diabetes. Even babies
fed a healthy diet after birth - meaning they had never eaten junk food themselves
- tended to be overweight. The female rats were particularly badly affected,
suggesting key differences in metabolism between the sexes, the Journal of Physiology
reports. The study builds on earlier work by the same researchers which
showed rats exposed to junk food in the womb or through their mothers' milk were
more likely to have a taste for junk food themselves. Researcher Professor
Neil Strickland said it was very probable that humans would be similarly affected,
with previous studies showing a correlation between a child's weight and that
of his or her parents. "Humans share a number of fundamental biological
systems with rats, so there is good reason-to assume the effects we see in rats
may be repeated in humans," he said. Urging mothers-to-be to think
about what they eat, he said: "The odd bit of junk food in pregnancy is not
going to do harm. "But constant gorging on junk food and putting on
too much weight in pregnancy is not going to set the child off with a good start."
The findings come as Britain fights the worst weight problem in Europe,
with a quarter of women and a fifth of men so overweight that their health is
at serious risk. Children fare little better, leading to warnings that
unless action is taken now, they are at risk of dying at a younger age than their
parents. Dr Pat Goodwin, of the Wellcome Trust, which funded the research,
said: "Obesity has increased dramatically over the last few years and needs
to be tackled urgently. "Pregnancy can be a difficult time for many
mothers, but it is important that they are aware that what they eat may affect
their offspring." Where to next? | 
