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• The study, in six countries, followed 3,500 babies and their mothers from early pregnancy to childhood
• The growth of the fetal abdomen is influenced by the mother’s blood lipid metabolites very early in pregnancy
• Both the growth of the fetal abdomen and the mother’s blood lipid metabolites very early in pregnancy influence the child’s weight and body fat at 2 years of age
• The findings could lead to earlier identification of infants at risk of overweight and obesity - one of the most pressing global public health issues
These fetal growth patterns are also associated with blood flow and nutrient transfer by the placenta, demonstrating a complex interaction between maternal and fetal nutrition early in pregnancy that influences postnatal weight and eventually adult health.
The researchers monitored the growth inside the womb of over 3,500 babies in six countries (Brazil, Kenya, Pakistan, South Africa, Thailand, and the United Kingdom) using serial fetal ultrasound scans throughout pregnancy, and analysed blood samples taken from the women early in pregnancy and from the umbilical cord at birth. They then monitored the growth and development of the infants until 2 years of age.
José Villar, Professor of Perinatal Medicine at the University of Oxford, who co-led the study said: ‘This is the first comprehensive evidence, across geographic populations, of the complex interaction between maternal and fetal metabolism that regulates, early in pregnancy, unique fetal trajectories linked specifically to weight, adiposity and development during childhood. The study complements our previous work that identified fetal head growth trajectories associated with different developmental, behavioural, visual and growth outcomes at 2 years of age. In simple terms: the growth of babies’ bodies and brain track separately and early - while still within the womb’.