We are learning more and more about the impact of food and eating habits on our health and even on our genes and body structure. Back in 2008 research was published linking a high fat diet for a pregnant woman to having obese children. The research suggests that a high fat, high calorie diet changes the molecular structure of organs while the child is being carried in the womb. (Journal of Molecular Endocrinology 2008)
The link between obese mothers and obese children has been further developed since then and it is now accepted that there is evidence from animal and human studies which indicates that if you are an obese mother your obesity can impact on your child's development while in the womb, causing long-term, negative health implications for the child. The health implications link to the diseases we associate with being over weight such as:
the health of the heart and cardiovascular system
regulation of glucose/insulin levels which are linked to the causes of diabetes
development of hypertension and vascular dysfunction.
(Endocrinology Unit, Queen's Medical Research Institute, Centre for Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Edinburgh)
Risk prevention
The best way to prevent the risk that while you are pregnant your child is affected by your diet is to make sure you eat a healthy diet that is high in nutrients and low in harmful fats. The problem is that some fats are essential to your body functioning well and you need to eat them during pregnancy, while other less healthy fats should be avoided. There is also a risk that if you start to cut down on fat for example by eating fat reduced or fat-free foods you will end up eating more sugar and high-calorie, refined carbohydrates. Cutting down on fat does not necessarily equate to cutting down on calories. To make the right choice you need to know a little bit about fats so here is a quick guide to the main types of fats and which ones are good for you.
Fats to eat
Monounsaturated fats - these are liquid but may turn cloudy or solid at low temperatures. They are found in many oils such as peanut oil, cold pressed olive oil and canola oil. Other good sources are nuts including pecans, almonds and hazelnuts and seeds such as sesame and pumpkin seeds.
Polyunsaturated fats (essential to health) - these are liquid fats such as corn, sunflower, soybean and flaxseed oils. There are also found in some nuts, oily fish and flax seed and are known as the Omega-3 group of fatty acids. Omega-3 is essential to the body and cannot be made so has to be eaten.
Fats to avoid
Saturated fats (to be avoided) - these are usually solid and only melt at fairly high temperatures. They are the animal fats present in red meat and dairy products such as cheese, milk and eggs and in some oils like palm and coconut oil which are solid at room temperature. These are the fats that lead to high cholesterol and risk of heart disease. You do not need to eat them because your body can produce as much saturated fat as it needs without you eating saturated fats.
Trans fats (to be avoided) - these are formed when liquid oils are heated with hydrogen and are therefore called hydrogenated fats. You may see this on list of ingredients on food products. Hydrogenation is used because it makes vegetable oils last longer, but they are not good for you. Trans fats are found in vegetable spreads and margarines and are present in lost of processed foods such as crackers, biscuits and snacks. Fried foods and bakery goods are often made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Like saturated fats they increase the risk of cholesterol and heart disease.
Diet tips
A diet for a pregnant woman needs to include the good fats, but besides making sure you eat the right fats you also need to maintain a healthy and nutritious diet. This means getting a good balance of healthy fats, carbohydrates, proteins and nutrients.
If you want to find out how good your diet is take a free Do You Eat Right? diet questionnaire here: healthyweightlossways.com/eat-right-america-the-nutritarian-diet-review healthyweightlossways.com/eat-right-america-the-nutritarian-diet-review.
If you have time to plan ahead, aim to lose some weight before you get pregnant as that will help to make sure you are maximising your baby's good health expectations right from the start. Find out about a good weight loss diet planner here: healthyweightlossways.com/strip-that-fat-review healthyweightlossways.com/strip-that-fat-review.
Link to the research papers I used to write this article here:
Journal of Molecular Endocrinology 2008 jme.endocrinology-journals.org/cgi/content/abstract/JME-08-0025v1 jme.endocrinology-journals.org/cgi/content/abstract/JME-08-0025v1
Endocrinology Unit, Queen's Medical Research Institute, Centre for Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Edinburgh reproduction-online.org/cgi/content/abstract/140/3/387 reproduction-online.org/cgi/content/abstract/140/3/387
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