Link between obese mothers and children's high blood pressure

Brain receptor identified as key link between obese mothers and high blood pressure in children. Exposure of babies to high levels of the 'fullness' hormone, leptin, in the womb irreversibly activates receptors in the brain that regulate blood pressure, according to a new study by researchers from King's College London, part-funded by the British Heart Foundation. This activation may lead to a lifelong increased risk of high blood pressure and kidney disease. Previously, observations in humans have shown a link between obesity in pregnant mothers and high blood pressure and chronic kidney disease in their children, leading to a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, such as heart attacks, later in life. However, when observing families it is difficult to exclude the effect of other factors such as poor household diet. The new research as children of obese mothers are exposed to high levels of leptin during development in the womb. Leptin is a signal produced by cells in the body, especially fat cells, after eating to indicate satiety - fullness - and is important in suppressing appetite, but it is also thought to play an important role in the control of blood pressure.