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Associations of maternal weight status prior and during pregnancy with neonatal cardiometabolic markers at birth: the Healthy Start study

International Journal of Obesity volume 39, pages 1437–1442 (2015)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background:

Maternal obesity increases adult offspring risk for cardiovascular disease; however, the role of offspring adiposity in mediating this association remains poorly characterized.

Objective:

To investigate the associations of maternal pre-pregnant body mass index (maternal BMI) and gestational weight gain (GWG) with neonatal cardiometabolic markers independent of fetal growth and neonatal adiposity.

Methods:

A total of 753 maternal–infant pairs from the Healthy Start study, a large multiethnic pre-birth observational cohort were used. Neonatal cardiometabolic markers included cord blood glucose, insulin, glucose-to-insulin ratio (Glu/Ins), total and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), triglycerides, free fatty acids and leptin. Maternal BMI was abstracted from medical records or self-reported. GWG was calculated as the difference between the first pre-pregnant weight and the last weight measurement before delivery. Neonatal adiposity (percent fat mass) was measured within 72 h of delivery using whole-body air-displacement plethysmography.

Results:

In covariate adjusted models, maternal BMI was positively associated with cord blood insulin (P=0.01) and leptin (P<0.001) levels, and inversely associated with cord blood HDL-c (P=0.05) and Glu/Ins (P=0.003). Adjustment for fetal growth or neonatal adiposity attenuated the effect of maternal BMI on neonatal insulin, rendering the association nonsignificant. However, maternal BMI remained associated with higher leptin (P<0.0011), lower HDL-c (P=0.02) and Glu/Ins (P=0.05), independent of neonatal adiposity. GWG was positively associated with neonatal insulin (P=0.02), glucose (P=0.03) and leptin levels (P<0.001) and negatively associated with Glu/Ins (P=0.006). After adjusting for neonatal adiposity, GWG remained associated with higher neonatal glucose (P=0.02) and leptin levels (P=0.02) and lower Glu/Ins (P=0.048).

Conclusions:

Maternal weight prior and/or during pregnancy is associated with neonatal cardiometabolic makers including leptin, glucose and HDL-c at delivery, independent of neonatal adiposity. Our results suggest that intrauterine exposure to maternal obesity influences metabolic processes beyond fetal growth and fat accretion.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases Awards R01-DK076648 (PI: DD), and supported by P30-DK048520 Nutrition and Obesity Research Center Metabolic Core lab (PI: James O Hill). The lead author was supported by F32-DK101179 (PI: DJL) as well as by the National Institute of Child Health and Development T32-HD007186 (PI: William W Hay). Additional support was provided by the NIH/National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences Colorado Clinical and Translational Science Institute grant UL1 TR001082. Finally, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to all of our study participants.

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The contents of this manuscript are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Section of Neonatology, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO, USA

    D J Lemas & J E Friedman

  2. Department of Medicine, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, USA

    J T Brinton

  3. Department of Epidemiology, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO, USA

    A L B Shapiro & D Dabelea

  4. Department of Biostatistics and Informatics, Colorado School of Public Health, Aurora, CO, USA

    D H Glueck

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  1. D J Lemas
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Correspondence to D Dabelea.

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Lemas, D., Brinton, J., Shapiro, A. et al. Associations of maternal weight status prior and during pregnancy with neonatal cardiometabolic markers at birth: the Healthy Start study. Int J Obes 39, 1437–1442 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2015.109

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