Expectant mothers classified as obese can reduce their baby's fat percentage at birth, setting them up for a healthier childhood, simply by sitting less, according to a new study from the Lawson Health and Research Institute.
Researchers found that providing moms-to-be with lifestyle counselling on physical activity and healthy eating during pregnancy reduced the risk for neonatal adiposity (obesity) in their babies.
“We wanted to take a closer look at what specific lifestyle change was related to this reduction in fat. Through further analysis, we found that it was the amount of time spent simply sitting,” study collaborator and Lawson Scientist Dr. David Hill said in a statement. “As part of recommendations on healthy eating and physical activity, pregnant women who are obese should be counselled on ways to reduce the time they spend sitting.”
Obese, expectant mothers from nine European countries and a total of 334 babies participated in the study. Some of the women received lifestyle counselling on physical activity, healthy eating or a combination of the two during pregnancy, while the rest received no counselling.
Researchers found the expectant mothers who got the combined counselling gain less weight during pregnancy, increase their physical activity, improve their eating habits, and reduce their time spent sitting. Most importantly, their babies were born with less fat, which reduces the newborn's risk for childhood obesity and Type 2 diabetes, the study states.
The more time the women spent on their feet moving around also reduced the levels of leptin, a hormone produced by fat tissue and the placenta. The hormone is known to inhibit insulin production and increase the risk of gestational diabetes. One-third of obese women develop gestational diabetes during pregnancy.
“Treating pregnant women with medication to control gestational diabetes risks unwanted effects on the fetus,” said Hill. “Identifying effective lifestyle modifications would be the safest, most affordable method of preventing short-term and long-term disease for both the mother and baby.”
The study “a reduction in sedentary behaviour in obese women during pregnancy reduces neonatal adiposity: The DALI randomized controlled trial,” was recently published in Diabetologia.