Microbiome of first stool may predict infant's likelihood of developing obesity

Reviewed by James Ives, M.Psych. (Editor)Jul 8 2020

Meconium—the earliest stool of an infant—is composed of materials ingested during the time the infant spends in the uterus. A new study published in Pediatric Obesity found that the types of normal bacteria found in the meconium may predict an infant's likelihood of later developing obesity.

In the study of 212 newborns, children who became overweight at 3 years of age differed in their meconium bacterial makeup from those with normal weight, having a higher proportion of bacteria in theBacteroidetesphylum (29% versus 15%).

The concept of fetal microbiome is controversial and the colonization process after birth is better understood than the possible fetal colonization; however, there are many prenatal factors affecting the microbial composition of the baby's first stool, such as the mother's use of antibiotics during pregnancy and biodiversity of the home environment during pregnancy. It is very interesting that the microbiome formed before birth is possibly linked to a child's subsequent weight status."

Katja Korpela, MD, Corresponding Author, University of Oulu, in Finland

The authors noted that the results emphasize the importance of investigating maternal and prenatal factors when considering the pathogenesis of pediatric obesity.