MedWire News: Women who have a poor diet consisting of crisps, cheese, muffins and other processed foods during pregnancy and breastfeeding may be harming the long-term health of their babies, study results suggest.
Dr Stéphanie Bayol and colleagues from the Royal Veterinary College in London, UK, studied rats that were fed either a diet containing high levels of fat, salt and sugar or a balanced diet during pregnancy and lactation.
The team found that the offspring of rats that were fed the junk food diet were born heavier and with higher fat levels than the offspring of animals that were fed the balanced diet.
The offspring of rats fed the junk food diet were also born with a preference for eating junk food. And, even when fed a balanced diet after weaning, these offspring had higher levels of cholesterol, insulin and other heart disease and diabetes risk factors into adolescent and adulthood than the offspring of rats fed the balanced diet.
The female offspring of rats fed the junk food diet were particularly badly affected, note the researchers in the Journal of Physiology.
"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," explained co-researcher Professor Neil Stickland.
Dr Bayol concluded: "It seems that a mother's diet whilst pregnant and breastfeeding is very important for the long-term health of her child."
However, she added: "This does not mean that obesity and poor health is inevitable and it is important that we take care of ourselves and live a healthy lifestyle.
"But it does mean that mothers must eat responsibly whilst pregnant."
Commenting on the findings, Dr Pat Goodwin, head of pathogens, immunology and population health at the Wellcome Trust, who was not involved with the study, said: "Obesity has increased dramatically over the last few years and needs to be tackled urgently.
"This study supports the idea that there are many different risk factors that can lead to someone being overweight and developing related health problems. 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."