Abstract P246: Fish Oil Supplementation During Early Life Improves Metabolic Health in Diet Induced Obesity

Abstract

Objective: Obesity is global epidemic and a complex disease that increases the risk for cardiovascular and metabolic disorders. Over half of American women of child bearing age are either obese or overweight, putting their offspring at high risk for childhood obesity and comorbidity. Hence, maternal programming through diet is critical for prevention of obesity and its metabolic complications in the offspring. Fish oil (FO), rich in very long chain omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids exert various health benefits such as reduced serum triglycerides, inflammation and insulin resistance. However, it remains unclear whether maternal and/or post-natal consumption of FO protects offspring from adverse effects of consuming high fat (HF) diet. Methods: Female mice were fed low fat diets (LF, control diet), HF diets supplemented without (HF) or with FO for 8 weeks pre-pregnancy through lactation, and bred to low fat fed male mice. After weaning, male and female offspring from HF or FO dams were either continued on their respective diets (HF-HF and FO-FO) or switched to the other diet (HF->FO and FO->HF) and compared to LF. Serum, adipose tissue, and other tissues were collected at the end of the feeding period for further analyses. Results: HF fed mice of both sexes had significantly higher body weight and were insulin resistant compared to LF mice. Male offspring who continued on FO during pregnancy and early life (FO-FO) demonstrated significantly higher glucose clearance and insulin sensitivity compared to offspring that were switched to HF (FO-HF) (P<0.05). However, no differences were observed between pups born to HF fed dams. Interestingly, in the female offspring, all groups that received FO either during pregnancy or early life (FO-FO, FO-HF, HF-FO) demonstrated better glucose tolerance than HF-HF groups. Furthermore, adiposity and inflammation was significantly lower in all pups that received fish oil either during pregnancy or early life (FO-FO, FO-HF, HF-FO) compared to HF fed mice in both male and female pups. Conclusions: Supplementation of FO during pregnancy and early life is more beneficial than treating with FO either during pregnancy or in neonatally.