Fetal stress disrupts the way genes are transmitted

MNT: "If you think stress is killing you, you may be right, but what you don't know is that stress might have harmed your health even before you were born. In a new report appearing in the August 2013 issue of The FASEB Journal, Harvard researchers find that epigenetic disruptions, which are associated with chronic disease later in life, are already common at birth. Possibly, these aberrations result from stressors in the intrauterine environment (e.g. maternal smoking, maternal diet, or high levels of endocrine-disrupting chemicals). This finding supports the belief that seeds of disease are sown before birth, increasing the importance of optimal prenatal care."

From the FASEB journal

The prevalence of loss of imprinting of H19 and IGF2 at birth