Influence of a "cafeteria" diet on heat production during postnatal development of the rat

Despite different food availability for pregnant rats, the maternal diet had no effect on the weight of the pups at birth. There were no differences in thermogenesis during lactation in pups from dams that received cafeteria diet during pregnancy and after parturition. Both groups of pups grew faster than controls with, however, indistinguishable thermogenesis rates for all pups. After weaning, relative heat production decreased in all groups, even though cafeteria rats showed higher rates than the controls. The higher availability of energetic substrates resulted in increased growth in pups, but only after weaning was the heat output enhanced.