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Background: Maternal nutritional status and dietary profile during pregnancy and lactation have short- and long-term impacts on offspring health. However, there is an incomplete understanding of the mechanisms behind these health effects. This study aims to assess the effect of maternal diet on the health of offspring by examining to unravel the impact of maternal diet on offspring health outcomes and evaluate the link between maternal nutrition, human milk immune components and neonatal colonisation as potential mechanisms that mediate the influence of maternal diet in the incidence of infant infections.
Methods: To assess this objective, we used two complementary approaches by which a clinical observational study based on the MAMI birth cohort guided a preclinical interventional analysis using a neonatal rat model of rotavirus-induced gastroenteritis.
Findings: The findings in both approaches demonstrated that a maternal diet rich in plant-based protein, fibre and polyunsaturated fatty acids, was linked to reduced incidence and severity of infections in offspring that would be mediated by beneficial modulation of the gut microbiota and immune system. Specifically, in the suckling rats, a predominant Th1 immune response and an enhanced virus-specific response were observed. Moreover, human milk IgA and rat milk IgG2c played a key protective role that complemented the effects of maternal diet.
Interpretation: These results strengthen the importance of maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation supporting infant health.
Funding: The study was supported by LaMarató-TV3 (DIM-2-ELI, ref. 2018-27/30-31).
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2025.105850 | DOI Listing |
Curr Obes Rep
September 2025
Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
Purpose Of The Review: This review aimed to summarize current evidence on the effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy (MNT) in the management of obesity and endometriosis, with a focus on dietary patterns such as the Mediterranean and Ketogenic diets, as well as nutritional supplementation. Additionally, it highlights the central role of the clinical nutritionist in implementing individualized, evidence-based interventions within multidisciplinary care.
Recent Findings: Although the literature reports the existence of an inverse relationship between risk of endometriosis and body mass index, clinical evidence jointly reports that a condition of obesity is associated with greater disease severity.
Front Microbiol
August 2025
College of Animal Science and Technology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, Jilin, China.
Background: Maternal dietary intervention utilizing complex additives rich in β-carotene has demonstrated the capacity to enhance embryonic intestinal development and influence microbial composition in offspring. Nevertheless, the extended impact of maternal β-carotene inclusion on the intestinal health of post-hatching chicks is still not fully elucidated.
Objective: This research aimed to evaluate the impacts of maternal β-carotene supplementation on the intestinal development and microbial communities in chicks after hatching.
J Hum Nutr Diet
October 2025
School of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK.
Background: Evidence suggests that women should eat a healthy diet during pre-conception and pregnancy as this benefits their own health as well as reducing the risk of non-communicable diseases in offspring (such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular and mental health problems); however, previous work indicates that the recommendations are not being followed. This study aimed to understand: the facilitators and barriers to healthy food and diet practices during pre-conception and pregnancy; how these barriers could be addressed, and the changes required to facilitate good food practices.
Methods: The research used a qualitative approach; five online focus groups were undertaken with 19 women living across the UK who were trying to conceive, pregnant or had babies under 6-months old.
Aging Cell
September 2025
Division of Biomedical and Life Sciences, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK.
Almost half of pregnant women globally are currently estimated to be overweight or obese. Rates of childhood obesity are also on the rise, in part because of increased consumption of dietary saturated fats. However, the long-term effect of peri- and postnatal high fat (HF) feeding on cognitive function and neuronal expression has not yet been investigated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Nutr Biochem
September 2025
Department of Woman-Mother-Child, Division of Pediatrics, DOHaD Laboratory, University of Lausanne and Lausanne University Hospital, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland. Electronic address:
Background: Individuals born after intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) have a higher risk of developing metabolic syndrome (MetS) in adulthood. In a rat model, male IUGR offspring exhibit MetS features-including elevated systolic blood pressure, glucose intolerance, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and increased visceral adipose tissue (VAT)-by 6 months of age. Female offspring, however, do not.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF