Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 The developmental origins of health and disease: an overview
- 2 The ‘developmental origins’ hypothesis: epidemiology
- 3 The conceptual basis for the developmental origins of health and disease
- 4 The periconceptional and embryonic period
- 5 Epigenetic mechanisms
- 6 A mitochondrial component of developmental programming
- 7 Role of exposure to environmental chemicals in developmental origins of health and disease
- 8 Maternal nutrition and fetal growth and development
- 9 Placental mechanisms and developmental origins of health and disease
- 10 Control of fetal metabolism: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 11 Lipid metabolism: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 12 Prenatal hypoxia: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 13 The fetal hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 14 Perinatal influences on the endocrine and metabolic axes during childhood
- 15 Patterns of growth: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 16 The developmental environment and the endocrine pancreas
- 17 The developmental environment and insulin resistance
- 18 The developmental environment and the development of obesity
- 19 The developmental environment and its role in the metabolic syndrome
- 20 Programming the cardiovascular system
- 21 The role of vascular dysfunction in developmental origins of health and disease: evidence from human and animal studies
- 22 The developmental environment and atherogenesis
- 23 The developmental environment, renal function and disease
- 24 The developmental environment: effect on fluid and electrolyte homeostasis
- 25 The developmental environment: effects on lung structure and function
- 26 Developmental origins of asthma and related allergic disorders
- 27 The developmental environment: influences on subsequent cognitive function and behaviour
- 28 The developmental environment and the origins of neurological disorders
- 29 The developmental environment: clinical perspectives on effects on the musculoskeletal system
- 30 The developmental environment: experimental perspectives on skeletal development
- 31 The developmental environment and the early origins of cancer
- 32 The developmental environment: implications for ageing and life span
- 33 Developmental origins of health and disease: implications for primary intervention for cardiovascular and metabolic disease
- 34 Developmental origins of health and disease: public-health perspectives
- 35 Developmental origins of health and disease: implications for developing countries
- 36 Developmental origins of health and disease: ethical and social considerations
- 37 Past obstacles and future promise
- Index
- References
8 - Maternal nutrition and fetal growth and development
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 August 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 The developmental origins of health and disease: an overview
- 2 The ‘developmental origins’ hypothesis: epidemiology
- 3 The conceptual basis for the developmental origins of health and disease
- 4 The periconceptional and embryonic period
- 5 Epigenetic mechanisms
- 6 A mitochondrial component of developmental programming
- 7 Role of exposure to environmental chemicals in developmental origins of health and disease
- 8 Maternal nutrition and fetal growth and development
- 9 Placental mechanisms and developmental origins of health and disease
- 10 Control of fetal metabolism: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 11 Lipid metabolism: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 12 Prenatal hypoxia: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 13 The fetal hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 14 Perinatal influences on the endocrine and metabolic axes during childhood
- 15 Patterns of growth: relevance to developmental origins of health and disease
- 16 The developmental environment and the endocrine pancreas
- 17 The developmental environment and insulin resistance
- 18 The developmental environment and the development of obesity
- 19 The developmental environment and its role in the metabolic syndrome
- 20 Programming the cardiovascular system
- 21 The role of vascular dysfunction in developmental origins of health and disease: evidence from human and animal studies
- 22 The developmental environment and atherogenesis
- 23 The developmental environment, renal function and disease
- 24 The developmental environment: effect on fluid and electrolyte homeostasis
- 25 The developmental environment: effects on lung structure and function
- 26 Developmental origins of asthma and related allergic disorders
- 27 The developmental environment: influences on subsequent cognitive function and behaviour
- 28 The developmental environment and the origins of neurological disorders
- 29 The developmental environment: clinical perspectives on effects on the musculoskeletal system
- 30 The developmental environment: experimental perspectives on skeletal development
- 31 The developmental environment and the early origins of cancer
- 32 The developmental environment: implications for ageing and life span
- 33 Developmental origins of health and disease: implications for primary intervention for cardiovascular and metabolic disease
- 34 Developmental origins of health and disease: public-health perspectives
- 35 Developmental origins of health and disease: implications for developing countries
- 36 Developmental origins of health and disease: ethical and social considerations
- 37 Past obstacles and future promise
- Index
- References
Summary
Introduction
There has been a great deal of literature devoted to better understanding the determinants of offspring size at birth. Over several decades the importance of maternal size has been acknowledged as a key factor in the fetal development of her offspring and from this association it has followed that maternal nutrition must also be of importance to the growth of her unborn infants. This chapter reviews the extent of the evidence for an association between maternal nutrition and reduced offspring size at birth, as characterised by low birthweight (birthweight of less than 2500 g irrespective of length of gestation). After acknowledging the complexity of the notion of low birthweight (LBW), maternal nutrition is defined in the context of its potential influence on fetal growth and the available evidence is summarised for associations between LBW and maternal anthropometry, nutritional status and diet in pregnancy. The evidence is drawn from both observational studies and from intervention studies (randomised controlled trials, RCTs), the latter of which may avoid the biases that often arise in uncontrolled trials. Where sufficient data are available the effects of nutritional interventions are quantified in terms of their demonstrated effects on fetal size and maturity at birth. The second part of the chapter discusses important limitations in our current understanding of the nature of the association and the potential implications this has for interventions to improve fetal growth.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Developmental Origins of Health and Disease , pp. 98 - 129Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2006
References
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