In utero exposure to maternal obesity and diabetes: Animal models that identify and characterize implications for future health

The developed and developing worlds are experiencing an epidemic of obesity and associated predisposition to diabetes. This epidemic places a major drain on health care resources. In the United States, estimates suggest that one third of adult women are clinically obese [1]. This increased incidence of obesity and diabetes includes women of child-bearing age [2-4]. It is now clear that maternal obesity and gestational diabetes have major adverse effects on the developing fetus that lead to increased neonatal morbidity and mortality, as discussed elsewhere in this issue. Obesity in pregnancy and gestational diabetes represent a special problem, not only as a result of their immediate adverse effects on maternal health and pregnancy outcome, but also because of growing evidence for their persistent and deleterious effects on the developing child.