New Delhi, Feb. 9 -- Males born to obese women are more likely to be overweight at birth and develop metabolic complications such as non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases and diabetes in later life. The way that male sex hormones activate pathways in the developing liver is partly to blame, as per finding from a new study led by University of South Australia (UniSA) researchers looking at the impact of maternal obesity on fetal liver androgen signalling.
Male fetuses of obese pregnant women have different signals that are activated by male sex hormones in the liver, which encourages them to prioritise growth at the expense of their health.
UniSA researcher Dr Ashley Meakin said androgens give men their male characteristics and are crucial in...