Follow-up of major intervention trials in pregnancy and early life (Theme 1)
Theme Leader - Prof. Cristina Campoy

Studies in Theme 1 will follow-up people who took part in previous intervention trials carried out during pregnancy and the first few years of life.  This will enable the effects of the interventions to be tested over a longer period.  The main hypotheses being tested are listed below:

• Does maternal diet have beneficial long term effects on visual, motor and cognitive development, and cardiovascular risk factors, including obesity propensity and type II diabetes for the child?
• Is prenatal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supply safe with regard to growth, infection rates, and occurrence of other potential adverse effects?
• Does infant feeding effect long-term adult health outcomes (atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and its risk factors, obesity, development of allergies, development of food preferences, and bone health)?
• Do neonatal fatty acid status and supplementation of formula feeds with long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) affects specific measures of neurodevelopmental outcome at the age of 8-12 years in term and preterm infants?
• Are gut bacteria different between children developing and not developing allergic disease?
• Are pre- and probiotic interventions during the neonatal period efficient and safe in the long-term?