Background Low birth weight is associated with an increased risk of developing chronic diseases in adulthood, with a particularly high incidence in Japan among developed countries. Maternal undernutrition is a risk factor for low birth weight, but the association between the timing of food intake and infant birth weight has not been investigated. This study aimed to examine the association between breakfast intake frequency among Japanese pregnant women and infant birth weight. Methods Of all pregnant women who participated in the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Three Generation Cohort Study, 16,820 who answered the required questions were included in the analysis. The frequency of breakfast intake from pre- to early pregnancy and from early to mid-pregnancy was classified into four groups: every day and 5–6, 3–4, and 0–2 times/week. Multivariate linear regression models were constructed to examine the association between breakfast intake frequency among pregnant women and infant birth weight. Results The percentage of pregnant women who consumed breakfast daily was 74% in the pre- to early pregnancy period and 79% in the early to mid-pregnancy period. The average infant birth weight was 3,071 g. Compared to women who had breakfast daily from pre- to early pregnancy, those who had breakfast 0–2 times/week had lower infant birth weight (β = -38.2, 95% confidence interval [CI]: -56.5, -20.0). Similarly, compared to women who had breakfast daily from early to mid-pregnancy, those who had breakfast 0–2 times/week had lower infant birth weight (β = -41.5, 95% CI: -63.3, -19.6). Conclusions Less frequent breakfast intake before and mid-pregnancy was associated with lower infant birth weight.

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Background Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) adversely affect the prognosis of mother and child, and the prognosis depends on the subtype of HDP. Skipping breakfast may be associated with increased blood pressure due to disruption of the circadian clock, but the association with the development of HDP has not been studied. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between skipping breakfast and the development of HDP and HDP subtypes in Japanese pregnant women. Methods Of the pregnant women who participated in the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Three-Generation Cohort Study, 18,839 who answered the required questions were included in the analysis. This study had a cross-sectional design. The breakfast intake frequency from pre-pregnancy to early pregnancy was classified into four groups: daily, 5–6 times per week, 3–4 times per week, and 0–2 times per week. HDP was classified into gestational hypertension (GH), chronic hypertension (CH), preeclampsia (PE), and severe preeclampsia (SuPE). Multiple logistic regression analysis and multinomial logistic analysis were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for breakfast intake frequency and development of HDP or HDP subtypes. We performed a stratified analysis based on energy intake. Results Of the participants, 74.3% consumed breakfast daily, and 11.1% developed HDP. Women who consumed breakfast 0–2 times per week had a higher risk of HDP (OR: 1.33, 95% CI: 1.14–1.56), CH (OR: 1.63, 95% CI: 1.21–2.19), and PE (OR: 1.68, 95% CI: 1.27–2.21) than those who consumed breakfast daily. No association was found between skipping breakfast and the risk of developing GH (OR: 1.26, 95% CI: 0.99–1.61) and SuPE (OR: 0.91, 95% CI: 0.55–1.49). Stratified analysis showed that the risk of developing HDP due to skipping breakfast was highest in the group with the highest daily energy intake. Conclusions Skipping breakfast during pre-to early pregnancy is associated with the development of HDP. Further longitudinal studies are required to clarify the causal association between skipping breakfast and HDP.

Objective: The association between high sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) intake during pregnancy and offspring overweight/obesity has been reported only from Western countries. The objective of this study was to examine the association between SSB intake before and during pregnancy and offspring overweight/obesity among Japanese women. Design: Japanese prospective birth cohort study Setting: We analysed mother–offspring pairs who participated in the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Birth and Three-Generation Cohort Study from 2013 to 2017. SSB intake during pregnancy was evaluated using the food frequency questionnaire and classified into three groups: none (0 g/day), medium (<195 g/day), and high (>195 g/day). Overweight or obesity at 1 year of age in offspring was defined as having a body mass index z-score greater than 2 standard deviations, calculated based on the body mass index reference data for Japanese children. Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the associations between SSB intake before and during pregnancy and offspring overweight/obesity, after adjusting for covariates. Participants: Japanese mother-offspring pairs (n = 7114). Results: The overweight/obesity rate of the offspring was 8.8%. Pregnant women with a high intake of SSB in early to mid-pregnancy had a higher risk of overweight/obesity in their offspring compared to those who did not; the odds ratio was 1.52 (95% confidence interval, 1.09-2.12). Conclusions: High SSB intake in early to mid-pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of offspring overweight/obesity at 1 year of age.