So you are doing your grocery and before you know it you are in line at the checkout counter behind a dad holding his little bundle of joy. As much as you resist it, you end up looking into a pair of eyes brimming with cuteness, and before you know it you’ve caught the baby bug and can’t shake off the broodiness anymore. At this point my advice to you is exit the grocery store and head for the gym!
Latest research conducted by The Ohio State University College of Medicine’s Wexner Medical Center, shows that people who tend to lead a healthier lifestyle and hit the gym on a regular basis produce offspring with a healthier metabolism which extends well into the child’s adulthood.
It’s All In the Genes
According to Dr. K. Craig Kent, Dean of the Ohio State College of Medicine “This work is an important step in learning about metabolic disease and prevention at the cellular level,”
Over the years, numerous studies have shown that fathers play a crucial role in defining the future health of their off springs. Development of type 2 diabetes and obesity in children is directly linked to the unhealthy eating habits of their parents.
A recent research conducted at the Ohio State’s Diabetes and Metabolism Research Center provides clear evidence that a father’s exercise regimen has a strong effect on his offspring’s metabolic health. A set of male mice were fed a normal diet while another set of male mice were give a high-fat diet for three weeks. A few mice from both the groups were sedentary while others exercised freely. Three weeks later, both the sets of mice bred and their offspring were fed a normal diet with no exercise for a year.
In the end offspring of mice who had exercised were shown to have better glucose metabolism, decreased body weight and a decreased fat mass. While offspring of dads fed a high-fat diet were more glucose intolerant. However, regular exercise negated that effect.
This research also proved that regular exercise enhanced the overall genetic structure of the father’s sperm which can counter poor dietary effects and transfer to the offspring.
Teamwork at the Gym
Although, we are not resting the entire burden of truth regarding a child’s future health on the physical fitness of its father. Which is why researchers are now focusing on determining if the physical fitness of the mother can further benefit the health of a child not just in the early stages of its life but well into adulthood as well.
I would like to leave you with some food for thought your brain can chew on en route to the gym.
According to Stanford, the lead researcher of Ohio State’s Diabetes and Metabolism Research Center:
“We know that in adult men obesity impairs testosterone levels, sperm number and motility, and it decreases the number of live births, If we ask someone who’s getting ready to have a child to exercise moderately, even for a month before conception, that could have a strong effect on the health of their sperm and the long-term metabolic health of their children.”
Photo credit: Eugenio Marongiu
