Finally, the uterine environment seems to “set” the embryo’s metabolism for what to expect after birth. In lean times, a poorly nourished mother may produce a baby whose metabolism is set to be efficient with energy extraction and storage. Fifty years later, if food has been plentiful, a person’s risk of heart disease, and probably their weight, is much increased. Similar uterine effects have been proposed for other disease, such as breast cancer. This model is called Barker’s Hypothesis.

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