According to a study out of Georgetown University Medical Center and published in Scientific Reports, obese male mice and normal weight female mice produce female pups that are overweight at birth through childhood, and have delayed development of their breast tissue as well as increased rates of breast cancer. These findings come from one of the first animal studies to examine the impact of paternal obesity on future generations’ cancer risk.

The researchers found evidence that obesity changes the microRNA (miRNA) signature – epigenetic regulators of gene expression – and since they found the change in both the dad’s sperm and daughter’s breast tissue, they suggest that these miRNAs may carry the epigenetic information from obese dads to their daughters.

We know that obesity and some breast cancers run in families and that maternal obesity is believed to influence both conditions in humans. It seems that there is also a link between the fathers and their daughters – at least in mice studies.

“This study provides evidence that, in animals, a fathers’ body weight at the time of conception affects both their daughters’ body weight both at birth and in childhood as well as their risk of breast cancer later in life,” said the main researcher.

Razi Berry, Founder and Publisher of Naturopathic Doctor News & Review (ndnr.com) and NaturalPath (thenatpath.com), has spent the last decade as a natural medicine advocate and marketing whiz. She has galvanized and supported the naturopathic community, bringing a higher quality of healthcare to millions of North Americans through her publications. A self-proclaimed health-food junkie and mother of two; she loves all things nature, is obsessed with organic gardening, growing fruit trees (not easy in Phoenix), laughing until she snorts, and homeschooling. She is a little bit crunchy and yes, that is her real name.