Overweight and obesity in expecting mothers may pass across generations to offspring, further increasing their day to day metabolic problems, say researchers.Researchers with the University of Wyoming and the Salvador Zubiran National Institute of Medical Sciences and Nutrition, in Mexico City, studied offspring of obese rat mothers.They found that the offspring of obese mothers had more body fat and showed early prediabetic signs such as an early rise in insulin resistance, increasing susceptibility to diabetes.Offspring of the obese mothers also showed the impaired function of their mitochondria, the power stations of cells that generate the energy cells need to function properly. These changes make it more likely that organisms will develop heart disease.The research -- which was led in part by Peter Nathanielsz of UW's Wyoming Pregnancy and Life Course Health Center -- was published in the journal of 'Physiology'.Interestingly, some of the unwanted outcomes resulting from maternal
