PITTSBURGH, July 21 — Mothers’ health in the days and weeks
prior to becoming pregnant may determine the health of offspring
much later in life, according to results of studies reported at
the annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Reproduction,
which takes place July 18 to 22 at the David L. Lawrence
Convention Center in Pittsburgh. These studies demonstrate that
maternal nutrition, protein intake and level of fat in the diet
may cause epigenetic changes in the developing fetus that can
have long-term health consequences. Summaries of their findings
are as follows: Too Much of a Sweet Thing? Maternal Diabetes and
Embryo Development The time between ovulation and conception may
be a critical one for maternal and fetal health, according to
Kelle Moley, M.D., Washington University School of Medicine. In
mouse studies, she found that subtle differences in maternal
metabolism had long-lasting effects. Indeed, when Dr. Moley
transferred embryos from a diabetic mouse into a non-diabetic
mouse shortly after