This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Maternal thyroid function may affect offspring BMI, CV development
Lower maternal thyroid-stimulating hormone levels during pregnancy were associated with lower BMI, total fat mass, abdominal subcutaneous fat mass area and diastolic blood pressure in the offspring, according to recent data.
“Maternal thyroid function during early pregnancy may influence childhood body composition and cardiovascular development,” Guilherme A.F. Godoy, MD, of the department of epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and colleagues wrote.
The researchers assessed the maternal thyroid parameters during early pregnancy (median, 13.2 weeks), according to data. Additional measurements of childhood growth were collected from birth to 6 years for the Generation R Study, which included 5,646 mothers and their children.
Data indicate that maternal thyroid parameters were not associated with childhood length and weight growth characteristics. In addition, researchers found lower maternal TSH levels to be associated with lower childhood BMI, total fat mass, abdominal subcutaneous fat mass area and diastolic BP (P<.05), but not with preperitoneal abdominal fat mass area, systolic BP or left ventricular mass, according to data.
However, higher maternal free thyroxine levels were associated with lower childhood BMI, abdominal subcutaneous and preperitoneal fat mass area (P<.05), but not with other CV characteristics, researchers wrote.
“Adequate availability of thyroid hormones during early fetal life is critical for fetal body and organ growth development. Thyroid hormones may influence fetal energy allocation, adipose tissue development and maturation of renin-angiotensin system. Variations in maternal thyroid function during early pregnancy may adversely affect fetal growth and cardiovascular development, which might predispose offspring to an increased risk of obesity and an adverse cardiovascular profile in later life,” researchers wrote.
Further studies are warranted to replicate these data, they added.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.