Can mom set their unborn babies on a path to sugar addiction or junk food binges, thereby leading them to become overweight or obese? A new study in the British Journal of Nutrition suggests just that.
Indeed, children of pregnant or breastfeeding women who eat sugary, fatty, and salty foods may develop these exact same unhealthy-food cravings, researchers from the Royal Veterinary College found.
"Future mothers should be aware that pregnancy and lactation are not the time
to over-indulge on fatty and sugary treats on the assumption that they are
'eating for two," said Professor Neil Stickland, co-author of the study, which was funded by Wellcome Trust, a UK foundation that funds research to improve
human and animal health.
In fact, lead author Dr Stéphanie
Bayol says that their research shows that "eating large quantities of junk food when pregnant and
breastfeeding could impair the normal control of appetite and promote an
exacerbated taste for junk food in offspring."
Can mom set their unborn babies on a path to sugar addiction or junk food binges, thereby leading them to become overweight or obese? A new study in the British Journal of Nutrition suggests just that.
Indeed, children of pregnant or breastfeeding women who eat sugary, fatty, and salty foods may develop these exact same unhealthy-food cravings, researchers from the Royal Veterinary College found.
"Future mothers should be aware that pregnancy and lactation are not the time to over-indulge on fatty and sugary treats on the assumption that they are 'eating for two," said Professor Neil Stickland, co-author of the study, which was funded by Wellcome Trust, a UK foundation that funds research to improve human and animal health.
In fact, lead author Dr Stéphanie Bayol says that their research shows that "eating large quantities of junk food when pregnant and breastfeeding could impair the normal control of appetite and promote an exacerbated taste for junk food in offspring."