An overweight woman who becomes pregnant is more likely to give birth to a child who will later develop non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (also called NASH or fatty liver disease).
- The prevalence of metabolic steatosis is 18.2% in the French adult population, or 7.83 million people.
- It is twice as common in men (25.8%) as in women (11.4%) and increases with age.
“We have to wake up, because NASH is a disease with significant complications, which affect adults and children”. At Paris Nash Meeting 2021hepatologist Rodolphe Anty sounded the alarm. “Doctors are often fatalistic, but personalized approaches work on patients,” he adds.
A vicious circle
For the past ten years, scientific studies have shown that the appearance of non-alcoholic steatosis could be played out from conception and the growth of the fetus in its mother’s womb. A recent synthesis of studies published on this subject suggests that the presence of excess maternal weight before pregnancy (overweight or obesity) is clearly associated with an increased risk of onset of non-alcoholic steatosis during pregnancy. childhood or adolescence of the offspring.
The increase in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease throughout the world would therefore be favored by a vicious circle, causing mothers who were overweight before pregnancy to have children with excess weight and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease themselves.
“Encouraging Points”
For Professor Rodolphe Anty, “there is concern that a transmission of excess weight and its liver complications could worsen from generation to generation”. The hepatologist, who has been working on NASH for twenty years and has seen this disease grow in France, remains positive, however. “There are encouraging points. Thus, breastfeeding, already known to have multiple protective effects on the infant, would protect children born to mothers who were overweight before pregnancy from steatosis”, explains the specialist. “In addition to breastfeeding, promoting a healthy lifestyle is crucial for the whole family. This can involve promoting a Mediterranean diet, rich in seasonal fruits and vegetables, low in red meat and ultra-processed foods. It is also important to encourage an increase in regular physical activity from an early age, and to fight against a sedentary lifestyle”, he concludes.
Unlike non-alcoholic steatosis, which is characterized by a simple fat overload in the liver, NASH associates this accumulation with inflammation and damage to the liver in patients who consume little or no alcoholic beverages. Unlike cirrhosis which is not reversible, NASH is reversible liver damage. However, it is likely to progress to cirrhosis and/or liver cancer.
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