OBJECTIVE To explore the effects of maternal smoking during pregnancy on offspring growth using three approaches: (1) multiple adjustments for socioeconomic and parental factors, (2) maternal-paternal comparisons as a test of putative intrauterine effects and (3) comparisons between two birth cohort studies. METHODS Population-based birth cohort studies were carried out in Pelotas, Brazil, in...

Life-history theory posits a fundamental trade-off between number and size of offspring that structures the variability in parental investment across and within species. We investigate this 'quantity-quality' trade-off across primates and present evidence that a similar trade-off is also found across natural-fertility human societies. Restating the classic Smith-Fretwell model in terms of allom...

BACKGROUND Parental obesity is a known determinant of childhood obesity. Previous research has shown a strong maternal influence on body mass index (BMI) during infancy and early childhood. OBJECTIVES The purpose of this research was to investigate the BMI associations between mother and offspring from birth to age 18 years. METHODS Participants were selected from the Fels Longitudinal Stud...

Background: Vitamin D status in pregnancy and offspring bone health effects are well established, yet limited knowledge exists on the effect of maternal vitamin D status on offspring size/adiposity. This study examines the association of early (13 weeks), late (28 weeks) pregnancy and neonatal (umbilical) 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) on offspring size/adiposity. Methods: This analysis included m...

BACKGROUND While parental consanguinity is known to increase the risk of birth defects in offspring, it is hard to quantify this risk in populations where consanguinity is prevalent. METHODS To support ongoing studies of cancer and of psychiatric disease, we studied relationships of consanguinity to 1,053 major birth defects in 29,815 offspring, born in 1964-1976. To adjust for confounding va...

Low birth weight is associated with cardiovascular disease in adulthood, but the mechanisms underlying these associations remain unclear. One possibility is that poor intrauterine nutrition “programmes” adult disease. An alternative hypothesis is that specific polymorphisms with pleiotrophic effects result in both small birth size and cardiovascular disease risk. Epidemiological evidence for a ...

Eighty-eight multiparous sows were used to evaluate whether type and timing of oil supplementation during gestation influences the incidence of low birth weight (LBW). Sows were allocated (eight per treatment) commercial sow pellets (3 kg/d; control diet) or an experimental diet consisting of control diet plus 10 % extra energy in the form of excess pellets, palm oil, olive oil (OO), sunflower ...

BACKGROUND Depleted uranium is being used increasingly often as a component of munitions in military conflicts. Military personnel, civilians and the DU munitions producers are being exposed to the DU aerosols that are generated. METHODS We reviewed toxicological data on both natural and depleted uranium. We included peer reviewed studies and gray literature on birth malformations due to natu...

Exposure to inadequate nutritional conditions in critical windows of development has been associated to disturbances on metabolism and behavior in the offspring later in life. The role of the endocannabinoid system, a known regulator of energy expenditure and adaptive behaviors, in the modulation of these processes is unknown. In the present study, we investigated the impact of exposing rat dam...

BACKGROUND Studies on maternal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) reported inconsistent findings regarding birth weight: some studies showed no effect, some reported decreased birth weight, and one study found an increase in weights. These studies used different markers of exposure, such as measurement of PCBs in maternal serum or questionnaire data on fish consumption. Additionally m...