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Maternal Obesity and Neurodevelopment of the Offspring

Anna Eleftheriades1, Sevasti Koulouraki1, Antonios Belegrinos2

  • 1Second Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Aretaieion Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11528 Athens, Greece.

Nutrients
|March 13, 2025
PubMed

Insights

Maternal obesity in pregnancy is linked to neurodevelopmental disorders in children. Further research is needed to confirm this association and explore genetic and environmental factors.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Growing evidence links maternal obesity during pregnancy to adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in offspring.
  • Conditions such as ADHD, autism spectrum disorders, intellectual disability, and cerebral palsy are associated with in utero exposure to maternal obesity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between maternal obesity and offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes.
  • To summarize current evidence on potential mechanisms linking maternal obesity to neurodevelopmental issues.

Main Methods:

  • A comprehensive literature search was conducted in Medline/PubMed and Google Scholar.
  • Keywords included maternal obesity, maternal overweight, maternal diet, neurodevelopment, and neuropsychiatric disorders.
  • Two independent reviewers performed the search and data extraction.

Main Results:

  • The review summarized evidence on mechanisms like inflammation, hormone dysregulation, microbiome alterations, and epigenetics.
  • Animal studies supporting the link between maternal obesity and offspring neurodevelopment were included.

Conclusions:

  • Maternal obesity appears associated with various neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring.
  • More robust studies are required to confirm the association, considering confounders like genetics and gene-environment interactions.
Abstract

Keywords:
maternal obesityneurodevelopmentneuropsychiatric disordersoverweight

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