Influence of maternal nutrition on the metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk in the offspring

Human epidemiological evidence and experiments using animal models have clearly indicated that maternal diet can have a significant impact on the life-long susceptibility of offspring to chronic disease. This includes many of the traits (obesity, insulin resistance, elevated plasma triacylglycerol and hypertension) associated with the metabolic syndrome. Evidence is presented that both maternal undernutrition and overnutrition are associated with such ‘fetal programming’. Metabolic syndrome is associated with an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease and recent evidence is emerging to suggest that maternal nutrition impacts on the development of atherosclerosis in the offspring. Epigenetic mechanisms, such as changes in DNA methylation, that result in lifelong changes in gene expression, appear to be at least one of the underlying mechanisms of such fetal programming.