Obesity of mother directly affects the child. Previous studies have shown that an overweight mother has a higher chance of giving birth to a plump baby. Obesity increases the risk of many diseases.
The recent study found that slightly undernourished rat pups were healthier adults, while overfed babies were fatter.
A separate UNSW study showed that pups from obese mother rats fed more milk were almost twice as heavy as those born to lean mothers feeding normally.