Long term links between maternal diet during pregnancy and offspring health

The developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis propose that lifelong health is programmed during foetal development, in utero. The world’s population is ageing due to increased longevity but expanding morbidity and the associated burden on health systems around the planet, are associated with this. Consequently, resources are strained and spent largely on treating patients rather than preventing chronic diseases at their source. Research on early life exposures, starting in the womb, is needed to identify new potential biomarkers linked with the development of chronic diseases during adulthood. Evidence from maternal-offspring cohorts investigating associations between pregnancy exposures and childhood metabolic health is reviewed (The GUSTO study in Singapore, the Copenhagen Prospective Studies on Asthma in Childhood, a mother-child cohort in rural Gambia, the MINIMat study in Bangladesh, The Iodine Status in Pregnancy and Offspring Health Cohort in China, the OBESO cohort in Mexico, the Pune Nutrition study in India, The Reus-Tarragona Birth Cohort study in Spain). Collectively, evidence from prospective observational studies, randomised controlled trials and animal studies, supports the hypothesis that maternal diet, lifestyle and nutritional status during pregnancy are associated with childhood metabolic health in the offspring. However, the evidence is scant and further research is needed.