A grandfather's obesity has effects on metabolic health across generations, from his sons to his grandsons. This is what researchers at Sydney's Victor Chang Institute and Garvan Institute of Medical Research have found through a study involving mice.
"The grandchildren are at significant risk of getting very sick if they eat a 'junk food diet' -- even when their father eats well and is healthy. The effects of the diet on offspring are dramatic, even when they eat poorly for just for a short time, all because their grandfather was obese," said Associate Professor Catherine Suter, as per Science Daily. Suter is the lead author of the study.
How your grandfather's weight could wreck your health: Damaging effects of obesity can be passed down through gene... https://t.co/RuqpDMxUd6
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Grandchildren Reap Metabolic Health Consequences
According to a report from the Daily Mail, the study revealed that grandfathers who have a diet that is high in sugar, fat and junk food had grandchildren who have an increased risk of developing fatty liver disease. The grandchildren also are more likely to have symptoms of diabetes.
Grandchildren of obese mice were still prone to having poor metabolic health even if their fathers did not pursue an unhealthy diet at the time they were conceived. Mice who ate healthy diets had grandchildren with significantly improved metabolic health compared to the grandchildren of obese mice, the report added.
Fathers' Health Is Also Important
"We need to be aware that dad's health is just as important [as mum's], and has an independent contribution not just to the health of their children but the next generation," Suter said as quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald. Suter is from the Victor Chang Institute.
Another researcher, Professor Mark Febbraio, said that those who would become fathers should be looking at how their own health can influence their children and grandchildren's health. Febbraio is from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. The study was published in the journal Molecular Metabolism.
Fathers, are you watching what you eat? Share your comments on the study below.
