Maternal nutritional status, a sine qua non condition for fetal, neonatal, child’s and adult’s outcome

Abstract

Excessive gestational weight gain is a predictive factor for maternal obesity, with implications on newborn’s weight and potential short- and long-term complications. Gestational weight gain depends on ethnic and social factors, as well as on parity. Excepting the aforementioned factors, we must also recall the major impact of the genetic susceptibility being pointed out that three essential periods influence fetal evolution, i.e. periconceptional, intrauterine and postnatal. The intrauterine environment owns an essential role in the optimal development of fetus with an effect on the offspring’s organ structure and functions, being currently assumed that adulthood pathologies originate in the perinatal period. Thus, the relationship between excessive gestational weight gain and child’s obesity or metabolic disorders is well documented. Moreover, recent information from the literature suggests that child’s allergies, wheezing or asthma might also be related to maternal nutritional status. To sum up, excessive gestational weight gain owns a decisive role in the development of child’s obesity and metabolic disorders imposing the major importance of a balanced diet during pregnancy in order to favor an optimal weight gain with a positive effect on fetal wellbeing that will further prevent the offspring’s metabolic risk.