Читать книгу Textbook of Lifestyle Medicine - Labros S. Sidossis - Страница 71

It is now widely accepted that maternal health and lifestyle habits, as well as infants' early nutrition and exposure to environmental factors, are involved in the development of metabolic diseases later in life. For instance, the presence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is related to reductions in methylation of the mesoderm‐specific transcript (MEST) gene, a feature detected also among morbidly obese adults. When the fetus is exposed to GDM, the abnormal programming of the MEST gene increases the susceptibility of developing obesity later in life.

Another prenatal condition with future ramifications on the epigenome is that of famine exposure. Being exposed to famine prenatally can lead to alterations in the DNA methylation. Findings from a cohort study revealed that more young adults exposed to famine in gestation were underweight compared to young adults that were either exposed to famine postnatally or were never exposed. In contrast, more young adults exposed to famine postnatally were overweight compared to those gestationally exposed or unexposed. Underweight adults exposed to famine in gestation were hyperglycemic following a glucose tolerance test, and those exposed postnatally had elevated fasting glucose, compared to those unexposed.