While most people recognize that obesity has genetic links, they may not consider the impact of malnutrition. According to a recent study from Tulane University, a diet lacking protein in one generation may be responsible for health risks in offspring, including low birth weight and smaller kidneys that may linger for several generations.
The research supports the theory that starvation in one generation can create harmful genetic results in the next. This study highlights how a nutritional crisis in one ancestor can impact future generations.
Tulane researchers discovered that when paired mice were given a low-protein diet, their offspring had reduced birthweight and smaller kidneys over the next four generations. These are two risk factors for chronic kidney disease and high blood pressure. The study was published in the journal Heliyon.
Unfortunately, researchers discovered that improving the offspring’s diets had no effect, and further generations were born with low nephron counts. Nephrons are needed to help kidneys filter waste from the bloodstream. Future research is needed to evaluate if this study is translated to humans, but the results highlight how food insecurity or malnutrition may create adverse health outcomes for years to come.
Lead author Giovane Tortelote, assistant professor of pediatric nephrology at Tulane University School of Medicine, notes, "It's like an avalanche. You would think that you can fix the diet in the first generation so the problem stops there. However, even if they have a good diet, the next generations -- grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren -- may still be born with lower birth weight and low nephron count despite never facing starvation or a low-protein diet."
Improvements in the diets in any of the generations did not result in kidney development to normal levels in the offspring. If you think it’s just the mother’s diet that matters, think again. Although maternal nutrition is vital to an infant’s development, first-generation offspring were impacted negatively even when the mother or the father consumed a protein-deficient diet, according to the study.
This study on how diet can have a transgenerational effect on kidney development is one of the most current in the field of epigenetics, studying how environmental factors affect gene expression without altering the DNA sequence.
Four generations of offspring were researched, with nephron counts starting to show signs of normalization by the third and fourth generations. Tortelote suggests future research to find which generation comes back to normal kidney development and why the trait is passed on to begin with.
He states, "The mother's diet is absolutely very important, but it appears there's also something also epigenetically from the father that governs proper kidney development”.
As chronic kidney disease is the eighth highest cause of death in the US, the study also highlights a better understanding of the underlying causes of it.
"If you're born with fewer nephrons, you are more prone to hypertension, but the more hypertension you have, the more you damage the kidney, so it's a horrible cycle, and a public health crisis that could affect people across 50 to 60 years if we apply this to humans' lifespans," Tortelote said. "There are two main questions now: Can we fix it and how do we fix it?"
Here are 10 tips to improve paternal nutrition to prevent kidney impairment:
Avoid fad diets, which may lead to nutrient deficiencies, including B vitamins, calcium, potassium, fiber, and other important nutrients.
Obtain adequate protein from animal and plant-based sources such as eggs, low-fat dairy products, lean meat and poultry, beans, lentils, nuts, and seeds.
Limit ultra-processed foods high in sodium, such as frozen meals, canned soups, fast food, salty snacks, and other convenience foods.
Include healthy fats in your diet, from avocados, olive oil, canola oil, nuts, seeds, and natural nut butter.
Avoid alcohol! No safe level of alcohol has been determined for pregnant women. Alcohol may also impact sperm quality. 2
Don’t smoke. Smoking reduces oxygen to an unborn fetus and impacts birth weight and may result in fetal deformities.
Take a prenatal vitamin containing adequate folic acid, iron, and other nutrients necessary for a healthy pregnancy.
Include enriched grains such as bread and cereals to provide adequate B vitamins, iron, and other nutrients in your diet before and during pregnancy.
Avoid both sweetened and artificially sweetened soft drinks. Sweetened sodas are linked with an increased risk of kidney cancer. The risk of artificially sweetened drinks is unknown. 3
Maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight or obese is associated with diabetes and high blood pressure, which may lead to higher rates of chronic kidney disease. 4, 5
By Lisa Andrews, MEd, RD, LD
References:
Fabiola Diniz, Francesca Edgington-Giordano, Nguyen Yen Nhi Ngo, Gal Caspi, Samir S. El-Dahr, Giovane G. Tortelote. Morphometric analysis of the intergenerational effects of protein restriction on nephron endowment in mice. Heliyon, 2024; 10 (20): e39552 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39552
Pan B, Lai H, Ma N, Li D, Deng X, Wang X, Zhang Q, Yang Q, Wang Q, Zhu H, Li M, Cao X, Tian J, Ge L, Yang K. Association of soft drinks and 100% fruit juice consumption with risk of cancer: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2023 May 15;20(1):58. doi: 10.1186/s12966-023-01459-5. PMID: 37189146; PMCID: PMC10184323.
Yau K, Kuah R, Cherney DZI, Lam TKT. Obesity and the kidney: mechanistic links and therapeutic advances. Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2024 Jun;20(6):321-335. doi: 10.1038/s41574-024-00951-7. Epub 2024 Feb 13. PMID: 38351406.
Shariq OA, McKenzie TJ. Obesity-related hypertension: a review of pathophysiology, management, and the role of metabolic surgery. Gland Surg. 2020 Feb;9(1):80-93. doi: 10.21037/gs.2019.12.03. PMID: 32206601; PMCID: PMC7082272.
Lisa Andrews, MEd, RD, LD, is a registered dietitian and owner of Sound Bites Nutrition in Cincinnati. She shares her clinical, culinary, and community nutrition knowledge through cooking demos, teaching, and freelance writing. Lisa is a regular contributor to Food and Health Communications and Today’s Dietitian and is the author of the Healing Gout Cookbook, Complete Thyroid Cookbook, and Heart Healthy Meal Prep Cookbook. Her line of food pun merchandise, Lettuce beet hunger, supports those suffering food insecurity in Cincinnati. For more information,
Poor Diet Linked with Multi-generational Health Issues
While most people recognize that obesity has genetic links, they may not consider the impact of malnutrition. According to a recent study from Tulane University, a diet lacking protein in one generation may be responsible for health risks in offspring, including low birth weight and smaller kidneys that may linger for several generations.
The research supports the theory that starvation in one generation can create harmful genetic results in the next. This study highlights how a nutritional crisis in one ancestor can impact future generations.
Tulane researchers discovered that when paired mice were given a low-protein diet, their offspring had reduced birthweight and smaller kidneys over the next four generations. These are two risk factors for chronic kidney disease and high blood pressure. The study was published in the journal Heliyon.
Unfortunately, researchers discovered that improving the offspring’s diets had no effect, and further generations were born with low nephron counts. Nephrons are needed to help kidneys filter waste from the bloodstream. Future research is needed to evaluate if this study is translated to humans, but the results highlight how food insecurity or malnutrition may create adverse health outcomes for years to come.
Lead author Giovane Tortelote, assistant professor of pediatric nephrology at Tulane University School of Medicine, notes, "It's like an avalanche. You would think that you can fix the diet in the first generation so the problem stops there. However, even if they have a good diet, the next generations -- grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren -- may still be born with lower birth weight and low nephron count despite never facing starvation or a low-protein diet."
Improvements in the diets in any of the generations did not result in kidney development to normal levels in the offspring. If you think it’s just the mother’s diet that matters, think again. Although maternal nutrition is vital to an infant’s development, first-generation offspring were impacted negatively even when the mother or the father consumed a protein-deficient diet, according to the study.
This study on how diet can have a transgenerational effect on kidney development is one of the most current in the field of epigenetics, studying how environmental factors affect gene expression without altering the DNA sequence.
Four generations of offspring were researched, with nephron counts starting to show signs of normalization by the third and fourth generations. Tortelote suggests future research to find which generation comes back to normal kidney development and why the trait is passed on to begin with.
He states, "The mother's diet is absolutely very important, but it appears there's also something also epigenetically from the father that governs proper kidney development”.
As chronic kidney disease is the eighth highest cause of death in the US, the study also highlights a better understanding of the underlying causes of it.
"If you're born with fewer nephrons, you are more prone to hypertension, but the more hypertension you have, the more you damage the kidney, so it's a horrible cycle, and a public health crisis that could affect people across 50 to 60 years if we apply this to humans' lifespans," Tortelote said. "There are two main questions now: Can we fix it and how do we fix it?"
Here are 10 tips to improve paternal nutrition to prevent kidney impairment:
Avoid fad diets, which may lead to nutrient deficiencies, including B vitamins, calcium, potassium, fiber, and other important nutrients.
Obtain adequate protein from animal and plant-based sources such as eggs, low-fat dairy products, lean meat and poultry, beans, lentils, nuts, and seeds.
Limit ultra-processed foods high in sodium, such as frozen meals, canned soups, fast food, salty snacks, and other convenience foods.
Include healthy fats in your diet, from avocados, olive oil, canola oil, nuts, seeds, and natural nut butter.
Avoid alcohol! No safe level of alcohol has been determined for pregnant women. Alcohol may also impact sperm quality. 2
Don’t smoke. Smoking reduces oxygen to an unborn fetus and impacts birth weight and may result in fetal deformities.
Take a prenatal vitamin containing adequate folic acid, iron, and other nutrients necessary for a healthy pregnancy.
Include enriched grains such as bread and cereals to provide adequate B vitamins, iron, and other nutrients in your diet before and during pregnancy.
Avoid both sweetened and artificially sweetened soft drinks. Sweetened sodas are linked with an increased risk of kidney cancer. The risk of artificially sweetened drinks is unknown. 3
Maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight or obese is associated with diabetes and high blood pressure, which may lead to higher rates of chronic kidney disease. 4, 5
By Lisa Andrews, MEd, RD, LD
References:
Fabiola Diniz, Francesca Edgington-Giordano, Nguyen Yen Nhi Ngo, Gal Caspi, Samir S. El-Dahr, Giovane G. Tortelote. Morphometric analysis of the intergenerational effects of protein restriction on nephron endowment in mice. Heliyon, 2024; 10 (20): e39552 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39552
Finelli R, Mottola F, Agarwal A. Impact of Alcohol Consumption on Male Fertility Potential: A Narrative Review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Dec 29;19(1):328. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19010328. PMID: 35010587; PMCID: PMC8751073. Impact of Alcohol Consumption on Male Fertility Potential: A Narrative Review - PMC
Pan B, Lai H, Ma N, Li D, Deng X, Wang X, Zhang Q, Yang Q, Wang Q, Zhu H, Li M, Cao X, Tian J, Ge L, Yang K. Association of soft drinks and 100% fruit juice consumption with risk of cancer: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2023 May 15;20(1):58. doi: 10.1186/s12966-023-01459-5. PMID: 37189146; PMCID: PMC10184323.
Yau K, Kuah R, Cherney DZI, Lam TKT. Obesity and the kidney: mechanistic links and therapeutic advances. Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2024 Jun;20(6):321-335. doi: 10.1038/s41574-024-00951-7. Epub 2024 Feb 13. PMID: 38351406.
Shariq OA, McKenzie TJ. Obesity-related hypertension: a review of pathophysiology, management, and the role of metabolic surgery. Gland Surg. 2020 Feb;9(1):80-93. doi: 10.21037/gs.2019.12.03. PMID: 32206601; PMCID: PMC7082272.
Lisa Andrews, MEd, RD, LD, is a registered dietitian and owner of Sound Bites Nutrition in Cincinnati. She shares her clinical, culinary, and community nutrition knowledge through cooking demos, teaching, and freelance writing. Lisa is a regular contributor to Food and Health Communications and Today’s Dietitian and is the author of the Healing Gout Cookbook, Complete Thyroid Cookbook, and Heart Healthy Meal Prep Cookbook. Her line of food pun merchandise, Lettuce beet hunger, supports those suffering food insecurity in Cincinnati. For more information,
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