Choline in Pregnancy May Reduce Child’s Risk of Hypertension and Diabetes in Adulthood

Recent study results have highlighted the importance of eating a healthy diet in pregnancy. Marie Caudill, associate professor of nutritional sciences at Cornell University and colleagues investigated the effect on maternal intake of choline on production of the stress hormone cortisol in their babies. Results showed that the babies of women who consumed 930 mg of choline each day (more than double the recommended 450 mg daily intake) had 33% lower levels of cortisol than the babies of women who consumed 480 mg of choline each day. “The study findings raise the exciting possibility that a higher maternal choline intake may counter some of the adverse effects of prenatal stress on behavioral, neuroendocrine and metabolic development in the offspring,” Caudill said. “A dampening of the baby’s response to stress as a result of mom consuming extra choline during pregnancy would be expected to reduce the risk of stress-related diseases such as hypertension and type 2 diabetes throughout the life of the child,” she added. The researchers believe that increased maternal choline intake has an epigenetic effect on the expression patterns of genes involved in cortisol production. The study is the first human study to suggest that maternal intake of choline plays an important role in the genetic programming of the unborn child. Eggs and broccoli are both rich sources of choline.