Studies Show Processed Foods and High-Protein Pregnancy Diets Harm Child Health

A U.S. study published in *Environmental International* examined 1,031 pregnant women in Memphis and found that higher consumption of ultra‑processed foods was linked to increased urinary levels of di(2‑ethylhexyl) phthalate, a plastic‑derived chemical that can cross the placenta. Each 10 % rise in the proportion of ultra‑processed foods in the diet corresponded to a 13 % increase in phthalate concentration, a factor previously associated with low birth weight, preterm birth and neurodevelopmental disorders.

A Danish randomized trial reported in the *European Journal of Nutrition* followed 208 obese pregnant women and, at nine‑year follow‑up of 114 children, observed that offspring of mothers on a high‑protein, low‑glycaemic index diet had higher total cholesterol (0.30 mmol/L) and LDL cholesterol (0.24 mmol/L) than those whose mothers followed a moderate‑protein, moderate‑glycaemic diet. The findings suggest that maternal diet can have lasting effects on a child’s cardiovascular risk profile.