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Author Spotlight: Studying the Impact of Maternal Dietary Deficiencies on Long-Term Offspring Health Outcomes
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Author Spotlight: Studying the Impact of Maternal Dietary Deficiencies on Long-Term Offspring Health Outcomes

Published on: June 28, 2024

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Maternal smoking during pregnancy and offspring body composition in adulthood: Results from two birth cohort studies

Elma Izze da Silva Magalhães1, Natália Peixoto Lima1, Ana Maria Baptista Menezes1

  • 1Postgraduate Program in Epidemiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

BMJ Open
|June 15, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Maternal smoking during pregnancy is linked to adverse offspring body composition in adulthood, including higher BMI and fat mass. Early-life weight gain significantly mediates these effects, highlighting critical developmental periods.

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Epidemiology
  • Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD)

Background:

  • Maternal smoking during pregnancy is a significant public health concern.
  • Understanding its long-term effects on offspring health is crucial for preventative strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between maternal smoking during pregnancy and offspring body composition in adulthood.
  • To explore the causal pathways, particularly the role of early-life weight gain.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized a population-based birth cohort study in Pelotas, Brazil, enrolling infants in 1982 and 1993.
  • Followed cohorts to adulthood (mean ages 30.2 and 22.6 years), evaluating 7222 participants.
  • Assessed body composition measures including body mass index (BMI), fat mass index, and lean mass index.

Main Results:

  • Offspring of mothers who smoked during pregnancy exhibited significantly higher BMI, fat mass index, android to gynoid fat ratio, waist circumference, waist to height ratio, and lean mass index.
  • Offspring height was found to be lower in association with maternal smoking.
  • Weight gain within the first two years of life accounted for a substantial portion of the association between maternal smoking and offspring BMI, waist circumference, and fat mass index.

Conclusions:

  • Maternal smoking during pregnancy is demonstrably associated with unfavorable body composition in offspring during adulthood.
  • Early-life weight gain is a key mediator in the relationship between prenatal smoke exposure and adult body composition.
Abstract

Keywords:
body compositioncohort studymaternal smokingpregnancy

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