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Updated: Mar 15, 2026
Induction of Maternal Immune Activation in Mice at Mid-gestation Stage with Viral Mimic PolyI:C
Published on: March 25, 2016
Maternal diet, gestational weight gain, and inflammatory markers during pregnancy
Laufey Hrolfsdottir1,2, Casper G Schalkwijk3, Bryndis E Birgisdottir4
1Unit for Nutrition Research, Landspitali University Hospital and Faculty of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland. lah10@hi.is.
Objective:
To examine the associations of gestational weight gain (GWG) and diet with low-grade inflammation in pregnancy.
Methods:
A cross-sectional analysis of 671 pregnant women was performed, and diet was assessed in gestational week 30. GWG was recorded in weeks 30 and ∼37 (difference between the weight recorded at these time points and pre-pregnancy weight). Markers of inflammation, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), serum amyloid A (SAA), interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, IL-1β, and tumor necrosis factor-α were quantified in serum from week 30.
Results:
After adjusting for age, pre-pregnancy BMI, parity, smoking status, and education, each 1 kg increase in GWG was associated with 3% (95% CI: 1-5) higher hsCRP and 3% (95% CI: 1-4) higher SAA concentrations, which corresponded to ∼18% to 25% increase in these biomarkers among those with excessive weight gain. GWG was inversely associated with IL-8 while no associations were found for the other inflammatory markers. With respect to diet, women in the highest compared with lowest quintile of protein intake had 26% (95% CI: 3-54) higher hsCRP concentrations. This increase appeared to be driven by intake of animal protein. A similar pattern was observed for SAA.
Conclusions:
Excessive GWG, as well as high intake of animal protein, was associated with higher concentrations of inflammatory factors.
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