Obese mother, obese daughter? Look at the mother to know what her daughter will be like. This old popular adage has now been confirmed in research carried out by the University of Southampton in the UK. Daughters of obese or overweight women are more likely to develop the same condition. The same is not the case with sons. The results were published in the scientific journal Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Already one previous study had highlighted how the same situation occurs with overweight grandparents. The question is particularly delicate, because ours is among the Western countries with the highest rates of childhood obesity. Some regions such as Campania, even exceed 40% of children with a significant overweight. The situation prompted doctors to prescribe weight loss drugs as early as 12 years old.
Obese mother, obese daughter: the generational comparison
To test their hypothesis, the researchers at the UK university measured the body fat and muscle mass of 240 children at three different points in their childhood. The first time at 4 years old, the second time between 6 and 7 years old. Finally, the experts performed the last assessment between 8 and 9 years of age.
The working group then compared the children’s data with that of their parents. The analysis of the comparison underlined that girls have a body mass index and fat mass very close to those of their mother. The consequence therefore is that having a mother with weight problems significantly raises the risk of experiencing the same condition.
The same is not the case with sons. No link even between daughters and father’s weight
Surprisingly, the results of the study did not find the same link between mothers and sons. There is also no correlation between the weight of the father and that of the children, whether they are male or female. “These findings demonstrate that girls born to mothers who are obese or have high amounts of body fat may have an increased risk of accumulating excess body fat. More studies are needed to understand why this happens. However, our findings suggest that approaches to addressing weight and body composition should start very early in life, particularly in girls born to obese and overweight mothers.” Rebecca J. Moon she is the first author of the study.
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