Abstract
Background: Fetal malnutrition can program for metabolic syndrome in adulthood. Postnatal nutrition probably also results in metabolic programming. Protein intakes for premature babies and newborns with IUGR are relatively high, in order to attain catch-up growth. Long term consequences of this high supply at this critical period of life are not known.
Hypothesis: high protein intake during the preweaning period will result in long term metabolic consequences.
Methods: Rat pups were placed at birth in normal or expanded litters in order to create extra-uterine growth retardation. They were fed by gastrostomy from D7 to D15 and randomized into 3 groups with 50 %, 100% and 130% of usual mother fed amount of protein. Mother-fed pups (MF) served as reference controls. At D15, the pups were placed back with their mothers. Glucose tolerance tests were performed at D200. The weight was followed. Food consumption was also evaluated. The rats were sacrificed at D200 and the organs were harvested for morphometry and biochemical analyses.
Results: n=13 females in normal litter group, n=21 in litter expanded group. The weight of G50% was significantly less at D15, but not at D200. There was a trend to glucose intolerance with higher insulin/glucose ratio and basal insulin for G130% in the normal litter group, and in G130% and MF in the litter expanded group. The food consumption was not different among groups.
Conclusion: High protein intakes during infancy may lead to insulin resistance in adulthood. Catch-up diets may also lead to insulin resistance in adulthood.
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Des Robert, C., Li, N., Zhang, L. et al. 91 Does Protein Intake During Infancy Program for Glucose Tolerance in Adulthood?. Pediatr Res 58, 370 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-200508000-00120
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-200508000-00120