Rodent of the Week: Mom’s intake of fructose impacts females more, study says
Fructose is a simple sugar found in honey and in smaller amounts in some fruits and vegetables. The impact of fructose in the human diet has been the subject of some controversy. Higher fructose consumption has been linked to weight gain in humans.
A new study in rats suggests that high doses of fructose in pregnancy may not be a good thing, either, especially for female offspring. Researchers in New Zealand gave pregnant rats either water or a fructose solution designed to provide about 20% of the rats’ daily calories. Both male and female rats whose mothers received the fructose solution had higher blood levels of fructose and problems in insulin function compared with the offspring of the mice who received water. In addition, female offspring of the mice fed fructose had higher levels of the appetite hormone leptin and higher blood sugar. The placenta of the female fetuses was also lighter than those of the female fetuses in the water-fed group.
Studies are needed on the effects of long-term maternal fructose intake and whether there are gender differences in how metabolic diseases develop, the authors said.
“There has been a marked increase in the consumption of fructose-sweetened beverages and foods, particularly among women of reproductive age,†said the lead author of the study, Mark Vickers, of the University of Auckland in New Zealand, in a news release. “This is the first time that it has been suggested that female and male fetuses react differently to maternal fructose consumption.â€
The study is published online in the journal Endocrinology.
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