Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, OBGYNE, Pediatrics / 18.02.2021
Maternal Cardiovascular Health Linked to Offspring’s Heart Health in Adolescence
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Amanda Marma Perak, MD, MS
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics (Cardiology) and Preventive Medicine (Epidemiology)
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Chicago Illinois 60611
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The American Heart Association has formally defined cardiovascular health (CVH) based on the combination of 7 key health metrics: body mass index (weight versus height), blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose, diet, exercise, and smoking status. As we previously showed, the vast majority of pregnant women in the US have suboptimal CVH levels during pregnancy. We also showed that maternal CVH during pregnancy was associated with the risk for adverse newborn outcomes (such as high levels of body fat), but it was unknown what this might mean for longer-term offspring health.
In the current study, the key finding was that mothers' CVH levels during pregnancy were associated with their offspring's CVH levels 10-14 years later, in early adolescence. For example, children born to mothers in the poorest category of CVH (representing 6% of mothers) had almost 8-times higher risk for the poorest CVH category in early adolescence, compared with children born to mothers who had ideal CVH in pregnancy. Even children born to mothers with any "intermediate" CVH metrics in pregnancy -- for example, being overweight but not obese -- had over 2-times higher risk for the poorest CVH category in early adolescence. (more…)