Understanding How Health Before and During Pregnancy Affects Children's Well-being
Preconception and Prenatal Health Impacting Factors and Child Health
This research looks at how factors during pregnancy, like stress and lifestyle, might influence a child's weight and brain development as they grow.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Kaiser Foundation Research Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Oakland, UNITED STATES) |
| Project ID | NIH-11319107 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
We know that childhood obesity and challenges with brain development are becoming more common, and we want to find ways to prevent them early on. This project explores how things like psychological stress, substance use, and lifestyle choices during pregnancy might shape a child's health outcomes, including their weight and neurodevelopment. We will also consider how a mother's diet and physical activity, measured through a 24-hour movement profile, and biological markers (metabolomics) might play a role. Our goal is to identify modifiable factors that could lead to better health for children.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants would be pregnant individuals and their children, particularly those interested in understanding how prenatal factors influence child health.
Not a fit: Patients not currently pregnant or without children in the relevant age range (0-11 years old) would not directly benefit from participation in this specific research.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help identify key factors during pregnancy that, if addressed, could reduce the risk of childhood obesity and neurodevelopmental challenges.
How similar studies have performed: While emerging evidence suggests links between prenatal exposures and child health, this project takes a novel approach by examining multiple exposures and their combined effects.
Where this research is happening
Oakland, UNITED STATES
- Kaiser Foundation Research Institute — Oakland, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hedderson, Monique Marie — Kaiser Foundation Research Institute
- Study coordinator: Hedderson, Monique Marie
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.