Father's diet before conception plays crucial role

[humble3d]

Father's diet before conception plays crucial role

Mothers get all the attention. But a study led by McGill researcher Sarah Kimmins suggests that the father's diet before conception may play an equally important role in the health of their offspring. It also raises concerns about the long-term effects of current Western diets and of food insecurity.

The research focused on vitamin B9, also called folate, which is found in a range of green leafy vegetables, cereals, fruit and meats. It is well known that in order to prevent miscarriages and birth defects mothers need to get adequate amounts of folate in their diet. But the way that a father's diet can influence the health and development of their offspring has received almost no attention. Now research from the Kimmins group shows for the first time that the father's folate levels may be just as important to the development and health of their offspring as are those of the mother. Indeed, the study suggests that fathers should pay as much attention to their lifestyle and diet before they set out to conceive a child as mothers do.

"Despite the fact that folic acid is now added to a variety of foods, fathers who are eating high-fat, fast food diets or who are obese may not be able to use or metabolize folate in the same way as those with adequate levels of the vitamin," says Kimmins. "People who live in the Canadian North or in other parts of the world where there is food insecurity may also be particularly at risk for folate deficiency. And we now know that this information will be passed on from the father to the embryo with consequences that may be quite serious."

The researchers arrived at this conclusion by working with mice, and comparing the offspring of fathers with insufficient folate in their diets with the offspring of fathers whose diets contained sufficient levels of the vitamin. They found that paternal folate deficiency was associated with an increase in birth defects of various kinds in the offspring, compared to the offspring of mice whose fathers were fed a diet with sufficient folate.

"We were very surprised to see that there was an almost 30 per cent increase in birth defects in the litters sired by fathers whose levels of folates were insufficient," said Dr. Romain Lambrot, of McGill's Dept. of Animal Science, one of the researchers who worked on the study. "We saw some pretty severe skeletal abnormalities that included both cranio-facial and spinal deformities."

The research from the Kimmins' group shows that there are regions of the sperm epigenome that are sensitive to life experience and particularly to diet. And that this information is in turn transferred to a so-called epigenomic map that influences development and may also influence metabolism and disease in the offspring in the long-term. (The epigenome is like a switch, which is affected by environmental cues, and is involved in many diseases including cancer and diabetes. The epigenome influences the way that genes are turned on or off, and hence how heritable information gets passed along).

Although it has been known for some time that there is a massive erasure and re-establishment that takes place in the epigenome as the sperm develops, this study now shows that along with the developmental map, the sperm also carries a memory of the father's environment and possibly even of his diet and lifestyle choices.

"Our research suggests that fathers need to think about what they put in their mouths, what they smoke and what they drink and remember they are caretakers of generations to come," said Kimmins. "If all goes as we hope, our next step will be to work with collaborators at a fertility clinic so that we can start assessing the links in men between diet, being overweight and how this information relates to the health of their children."

Explore further: Obese dads pass on predisposition to obesity and metabolic disorders to their kids

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-07-obese-dads-predisposition-obesity-metabolic.html#inlRlv


More information: "Low paternal dietary folate alters the mouse sperm epigenome and is associated with negative pregnancy outcomes," by R. Lambrot, C.Xu, S. Saint-Phar, G. Chountalos, T. Cohen, M. Paquet, M. Suderman, M. Hallett, and S. Kimmins in Nature Communications, 2013.

Journal reference: Nature Communications search and more info website

http://medicalxpress.com/journals/nature-communications/

Provided by McGill University search and more info website

http://medicalxpress.com/partners/mcgill-university/

[nIGHT]

Some may not appreciate this article but I do.

Thanks for sharing it.

I need to post so that the op may see how important this is for someone like me.

It may help me trace the cause of my sickness. ;)

[kn_andre]

Some may not appreciate this article but I do.

Thanks for sharing it.

I need to post so that the op may see how important this is for someone like me.

It may help me trace the cause of my sickness. ;)

Am so sorry @nIGHT .. I did not know you had any Health Issues... Do try and Seek the Appropriate Treatment for your illness and i Wish you Recovery too .. May i Also Add that a Little Bit of Light Exercise will help improve your Health Condition. Even Brisk Walking for 15 minutes or more a Day will be good for you if you can Incorporate it into your Daily Activities .. Cheers ..

[nIGHT]

Some may not appreciate this article but I do.

Thanks for sharing it.

I need to post so that the op may see how important this is for someone like me.

It may help me trace the cause of my sickness. ;)

Am so sorry @nIGHT .. I did not know you had any Health Issues... Do try and Seek the Appropriate Treatment for your illness and i Wish you Recovery too .. May i Also Add that a Little Bit of Light Exercise will help improve your Health Condition. Even Brisk Walking for 15 minutes or more a Day will be good for you if you can Incorporate it into your Daily Activities .. Cheers ..

Thanks @kn_andre for your advice and sympathy. I am getting better, hopefully. There are other people who were in far more worst condition than I am, so I do not want to engage in having self-pity. I actually see this as a way to appreciate life. I understand that everyday is a gift of life and I must not waste time to live life, thanking and appreciating the people who were kind to me. ;)

[kn_andre]

Thanks @kn_andre for your advice and sympathy. I am getting better, hopefully. There are other people who were in far more worst condition than I am, so I do not want to engage in having self-pity. I actually see this as a way to appreciate life. I understand that everyday is a gift of life and I must not waste time to live life, thanking and appreciating the people who were kind to me. ;)

Its so Nice to see that you are Displaying a Very Positive Attitude despite what your going through... So, Continue to live your Life, Enjoy your Family and whatever else that make you Happy .. Aspire to Inspire People and Try as much as Possible to make a Good Impact in the Lives of people you Come in Contact with Daily - Later on, you will be Surprised at the Amount of lives you Actually Touched .. I Sincerely Wish you all the Best from the Bottom of my Heart .. Take care and Stay Safe... Have a Lovely Weekend too ... Cheers..

[dMog]

speedy recovery night...or streangth and wisdom to understand and to live with what ever it is that is the issue...and you have never shown you have self pity...

[nIGHT]

@kn_andre Thanks again. I will do that. Have a wonderful and cheerful Holidays to you too. ;)

@dMog Thanks big brother. Have a great Holidays my friend. ;)

"I rather wish that I'd be just a regular person with lots of caring friends than a being who conquers the world and yet is alone." - A lost alien

Edited December 22, 2013 by nIGHT

[kn_andre]

@kn_andre Thanks again. I will do that. Have a wonderful and cheerful Holidays to you too. ;)

@dMog Thanks big brother. Have a great Holidays my friend. ;)

"I rather wish that I'd be just a regular person with lots of caring friends than a being who conquers the world and yet is alone." - A lost alien

@nIGHT - you Sir, are a Regular Person and may i add that you have a Big Heart too !!! I wish you a Nice new Week Ahead .. Cheers

[nIGHT]

@kn_andre Thanks! You are very kind too my sister. Merry Christmas kn_andre and to your family! Wish you all the best for this coming year! :cheers: :D

Edited December 24, 2013 by nIGHT

[Turk]

Full Free Text:

http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2013/131210/ncomms3889/pdf/ncomms3889.pdf

[kn_andre]

@kn_andre Thanks! You are very kind too my sister. Merry Christmas kn_andre and to your family! Wish you all the best for this coming year! :cheers: :D

Your Welcome as Always .. I Also Wish you and your Family a Blessed, Happiness Filled and Prosperous 2014 .. Take care and Cheers ..