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Prenatal sugar exposure shapes late-life human capital and health

Gerard J van den Berg1,2,3,4,5,6, Stephanie von Hinke7,8,9, R Adele H Wang7

  • 1Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Groningen, 9747 AD Groningen, The Netherlands.

PNAS Nexus
|October 17, 2025
PubMed

Maternal sugar consumption during pregnancy may have a variety of effects on offspring. We exploit the abolishment of the rationing of sweet confectionery in the United Kingdom on 1949 April 24, and its subsequent reintroduction some months later, in an era of otherwise uninterrupted rationing of confectionery (1942-1953), sugar (1940-1953), and many other foods, and we consider effects on late-life cardiovascular disease, body mass index (BMI), height, type-2 diabetes, and the intake of sugar, fat, and carbohydrates, as well as cognitive outcomes and birth weight. We use individual-level data from the UK Biobank for cohorts born between April 1947 and May 1952. We also explore whether one's genetic "predisposition" to the outcome can moderate the effects of prenatal sugar exposure. We find that prenatal exposure to derationing increases education and reduces BMI and sugar consumption at higher ages, in line with the "developmental origins" explanatory framework, and that the sugar effects are stronger for those who are genetically "predisposed" to sugar consumption.

Keywords:
developmental originsfood consumptiongene–environment interplaynutrition

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