Babies whose mothers were exposed during pregnancy to stressors such as trauma, illness, alcohol, or drug abuse become susceptible to various psychiatric disorders later in life. Now, researchers think that it may be the stressor’s effect on single gene that gives rise to conditions such as schizophrenia, PTSD, autism, and bipolar disorders. The Yale University […]
Tag Archives | Pregnancy
Poor diet shown to have dramatic effects on sperm and future health of offspring
A startling new study from McGill University suggests that a father’s diet before conception plays a major role in fetus development and the offspring’s future predisposition to disease. The researchers say that significant alterations to the sperm epigenome triggered by diet and lifestyle choices should raise serious concerns about the long-term effects of current Western […]
Diesel fumes causing waistlines to bulge?
Pregnant mice exposed to diesel exhaust pollution gave birth to offspring with a significantly higher rate of obesity and insulin resistance in adulthood. The effect, say the researchers, was especially prevalent in male mice, which were heavier regardless of diet. The findings were published in the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology’sFASEB Journal. The […]
Paracetamol use linked to asthma and male infertility
New evidence has emerged that the use of paracetamol and other painkillers during pregnancy may be part of the reason for the increase in male reproductive disorders in recent decades, while another study has strengthened the link between maternal paracetamol use and infant asthma. The first study, in the journal Human Reproduction, shows that women […]
Male fertility impacted by stress in the womb
A surprising new study has found that exposure to a combination of excess stress hormones and chemicals while in the womb can affect a man’s fertility in later life. The researchers, from the University of Edinburgh, looked at the effect of glucocorticoids (stress hormones) combined with a common chemical (dibutyl phthalate) used in glues, paints […]
Influenza during pregnancy linked to schizophrenia
When mothers contract influenza during their pregnancy, it may increase the risk for schizophrenia in their offspring, reports the journal Biological Psychiatry. Now, a new study suggests that the observed association depends upon a pre-existing vulnerability in the fetus. Dr. Lauren Ellman, who is affiliated with Columbia University and Temple University, determined that fetal exposure […]