Do overweight mothers cause a reduced life expectancy of their children?

Overweight in pregnancy interferes with children's life expectancy
What effects does existing overweighting of mothers have on the life expectancy of children? This question has been investigated by Belgian scientists from Hasselt University in a recent study. The result is worrying: if women are overweight before pregnancy, it results in a drastic reduction in telomeres. Shorter telomeres are associated with decreased life expectancy.

The behavior and the constitution of the mother has many-layered effects on the development of the offspring. Especially during pregnancy, it can easily cause massive disabilities, for example, when mothers consume alcohol, smoking or taking certain medications. Even existing overweight in pregnancy can harm the child sustainably. In the current study, it became clear that maternal overweight could affect the overall life expectancy of the offspring relatively strongly.

Obesity during pregnancy has a lasting influence on the biological age of the children. (Image: Jeanette Dietl / fotolia.com)

Relationship of maternal weight with telomere length
In the study, the research team led by Tim Nawrot from the Belgian Hasselt University examined possible relationships between the body mass index (BMI) of the mothers and the telomere length in the offspring. "At birth, the telomere length of newborns is very variable" and the causative environmental factors for this remain so far "largely unknown," the scientists report in the journal "BMC Medicine". They therefore went to the question of whether overweight during pregnancy has an influence here. In 743 pregnant women, the mean relative telomere length in the umbilical cord blood was measured, and in addition, a sample from the placental tissue was examined in 702 test persons.

Neonatal telomere length decreases with increasing maternal BMI
The average age of the mothers was 29.1 years (range 17-44 years) and the mean pre-pregnancy BMI was 24.1, the researchers write. In the evaluation, a significant decrease of the newborn telomere length with increasing maternal BMI before pregnancy was observed. According to the researchers, this effect was independent of other factors such as maternal and paternal age, parental education, birth weight or tobacco use of the mothers.

Children of obese mothers biological up to 17 years older
With every increase in BMI above normal weight by one full digit, telomere length was reduced by 0.5 percent in umbilical cord blood and by 0.66 percent in placental tissue, according to Belgian researchers. This is equivalent to aging of the telomeres by 1.1 to 1.6 years. Based on telomere length, "newborns of obese mothers are biologically about 12 to 17 years older than newborns of normal-weight mothers," the researchers report. Conversely, the life expectancy of children could be shortened accordingly.

High BMI of the mothers poses numerous risks for the children
The researchers also confirmed in their study that increased pre-pregnancy BMI was also associated with more caesarean sections, pregnancy complications and higher birth weight. Overall, the effects of maternal body weight on the health of children should not be underestimated, and the study provides further evidence of the importance of weight reduction in the case of overweight. According to the researchers, women of reproductive age should also pay more attention to their weight in terms of the molecular longevity of their children. (Fp)