Project summary
Children born to mothers living with obesity or diabetes during pregnancy are more likely to develop heart problems. Dr Samuel Burden is investigating whether changes in the heart that start during childhood continue into adulthood, and whether health behaviours, like physical activity or diet, could help reduce this risk. This could help us find new ways to prevent generational links between diabetes and heart problems in offspring.
Background to research
We know that when mothers are living with obesity or diabetes during pregnancy, this can affect their baby’s heart and increase their risk of heart disease later in life. Research has shown that children exposed to these conditions can already develop early changes in how their heart looks and works, which may raise their chances of future heart problems.
However, there are still important gaps in what we understand. It’s not yet clear whether these changes carry through into adulthood, or what they might mean for heart health later on.
There is also uncertainty about where this increased risk comes from - whether it is mainly shaped by what happens during pregnancy, or influenced by factors such as physical activity and diet as children grow up.
Research aims
Dr Samuel Burden is exploring whether these early changes to the heart continue into adulthood, what might be driving them, and whether changes to diet or activity levels could help reduce these risks.
To do this, the team will use data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), a UK study which includes detailed heart scans from around 2,500 young adults.
They will compare heart health between young adults whose mothers lived with obesity or gestational diabetes during pregnancy and those whose didn’t. This will help them to understand whether exposure to these conditions before birth is linked to differences in how the heart looks and works into adulthood.
They will then look at whether factors such as body fat, physical activity and cholesterol in children of mums with obesity or diabetes help explain differences in heart health. And whether making changes to these health behaviours might reduce or protect against these risks.
Potential benefit to people with diabetes
By understanding how obesity and gestational diabetes shape children's heart health later in life, this research could help us get ahead of future heart problems through earlier prevention.
The findings could help inform support, education and prevention programmes for children at higher risk, while giving future parents living with obesity or gestational diabetes more knowledge about how early-life risk develops and what could help support their children's long-term health.
