Exploring the developmental overnutrition hypothesis using parental-offspring associations and FTO as an instrumental variable.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The developmental overnutrition hypothesis suggests that greater maternal obesity during pregnancy results in increased offspring adiposity in later life. If true, this would result in the obesity epidemic progressing across generations irrespective of environmental or genetic changes. It is therefore important to robustly test this hypothesis.

Methods and findings

We explored this hypothesis by comparing the associations of maternal and paternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) with offspring dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-determined fat mass measured at 9 to 11 y (4,091 parent-offspring trios) and by using maternal FTO genotype, controlling for offspring FTO genotype, as an instrument for maternal adiposity. Both maternal and paternal BMI were positiv

SUBMITTER: Lawlor DA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2265763 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature