Maternal obesity influences the endocrine cord blood profile of their offspring

Abstract

AbstractObjectiveTo compare the endocrine cord blood characteristics of offspring from obese mothers with those of offspring from healthy controls.MethodsCross-sectional case control study. Setting: University medical centers. Patient(s): Offspring from obese mothers (n = 41) and healthy controls (n = 31). Intervention(s): Cord blood withdrawal from neonates. Main outcome measure(s): Cord blood total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TGs), high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), blood glucose (GL) and insulin (Ins).Result(s)Fetal GL and TGs were reduced in the offspring of obese women when compared to those in the offspring of the controls. The mean cord blood GL level was 47.8 mg/dL standard deviation (SD 33.1) in the offspring of the obese group vs. 57.9 mg/dL (SD 12.5) in the offspring of the control group, and the mean cord blood TG level was 26.5 (SD 33.6) in the offspring of the obese group vs. 34.6 (SD 12.3) in the offspring of the control group. Maternal obesity was also associated with reduced levels of TC and HDL-C in the pregnant women.ConclusionThe observed results suggest that GL and TGs in the cord blood of the offspring of obese mothers were significantly lower than those in the offspring of the control group.