Workshop: Intergenerational Determinants of Childhood Obesity

Today, attendees at the 4th Canadian Obesity Summit will face the tough task of choosing between a variety of workshops dealing with topics ranging from harnessing public-private partnership to promote healthy food in retail stores to patient centredness and ensuring the physical and mental well-being of individuals living with obesity (for a full list of workshops – click here)

A workshop that I particularly look forward to is one on the determinants of the intergenerational transmission of obesity.

As the organisers of this workshop tell us,

“Studies in both animals and humans, including epidemiologic, clinical, and experimental data, have provided strong evidence implicating the intrauterine environment in downstream obesity. In recent years, significant advancements have been made regarding underlying molecular pathways and population level interventions and their effects on fetal programming of obesity.”

Thus, this workshop will provide an update on the topic and focus on the interplay between obesity, gestational weight gain (GWG), lifestyle behaviours, and early life factors (parenting) that exacerbate fetal/child growth and perpetuate the intergenerational obesity cycle.

Epigenetic and clinical evidence will be presented that demonstrates how perturbations during pregnancy affect fetal/infant phenotype and how early postpartum health (of mom and baby) predicts chronic disease risk later in life. The latest evidence from pregnancy and postpartum‐related intervention trials will be presented to identify avenues for clinical management and future research.

For more information on this workshop – click here.

@DrSharma
Toronto, ON