The Checkup: Lay Off French Fries If You’re Pregnant—Your Kid Could Become a Junk Food Addict

A new study found an interesting link between mom's junk-food habits and baby's.

• We all learned in 10th grade biology that things like eye color and earlobes are inherited traits. But, ladies, did you know your kids can inherit your junk food habits, too? A new study found that eating junk food while pregnant may turn your kid into a junk-food addict. The reason? Research on lab rats suggests that when mom eats junk food it actually changes the way a key signaling pathway works in baby’s brain. When the baby is born, that disruption in the brain signals results in a higher tolerance for junk food, meaning he or she needs to eat more junk food to feel satisfied by it. You can read about the science here—it’s pretty interesting—but check out the money quote by Gerald Weissmann, editor of the journal in which the study appears: “Junk food engages the same body chemistry as opium, morphine or heroin. Sad to say, junk food during pregnancy turns the kids into junk food junkies.” Awesome.

• Mark Bittman has an interesting read over on the New York Times‘ opinion blog this week, highlighting a new study on the link between sugar and diabetes. This about sums it up: “Researchers found that increased sugar in a population’s food supply was linked to higher diabetes rates independent of rates of obesity. In other words, according to this study, obesity doesn’t cause diabetes: sugar does.” More here.

What do your future surgeon and a Nintendo Wii have in common? The latter may have helped train the former. A new study found that surgeons who trained with a Wii scored better on skills-set tests than their traditionally trained colleagues (so long as they didn’t spend all their time mastering Wii bowling, of course). The Los Angeles Times has more.

Photo: Shutterstock