Unhealthy diet during pregnancy found to be linked with early symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) in children later, study reveals
-A recent study, conducted by the researchers at King’s College London, studied the affect of the mother’s nutrition on the epigenetic changes of genes (such as IGF2) involved in the fetal and brain development of the areas of the brain.
-The study included participants from the Bristol-based ‘Children of the 90s’ cohort, 83 children with early-onset conduct problems were compared with 81 children who had low levels of conduct problems.
-The study suggested that poor prenatal nutrition that comprised of high fat and sugar diets of processed food and confectionary, was associated with higher IGF2 methylation in children with early onset conduct problems.
-Higher methylation of the gene was associated with higher symptoms of ADHD between the age of 7-13 years and was true for children with early onset of conduct.
-Findings were published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry
Source: Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry