Introduction Globally, more than 20% of women of reproductive age are  currently estimated to be obese(1) . Increasing clinical and  experimental evidence suggests that maternal obesity also  affects the health and function of the offspring brain across  the lifespan(2) . This a systematic review  summarizes human studies that explore the impact of  maternal obesity on aspects of attention-deficit  hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorders, and  neurodegeneration in the offspring. Methods We used the methods recommended by the Centre for  Reviews and Dissemination, University of York (3) .and  followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic  Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement(4) . Several  databases were used for searching (PubMed, Science  Direct, Web of Science, and Google Scholar). Studies were  eligible if they compared the mental health of offspring  born to females that were obese before and during  pregnancy to offspring born to females that had a normal  weight before and during pregnancy. We excluded studies  for the following reasons: disease factor such as severe  diabetes, lack of a control group with a normal weight, editorials, conference abstracts and interviews. Exposures  considered were maternal BMI, height and weight, The  outcome was any measure of cognitive function and  mental health of the offspring. Quality assessment and risk  of bias was assessed using a standardized form consisting  of 22 criteria , including information about study setting,  population and design, sample selection, baseline  characteristics, reliability of exposure and outcome  measurements, the appropriateness of data analyses,  confounding factors adjusted for and the study results. We  included observational and longitudinal studies which  conducted between January 2010 and January 2021 . The  initial search yielded 250 articles and only 19 articles met  the criteria to be included in this review
Results
 Results showed that 4 studies largely support a negative  correlation between pre-pregnancy maternal obesity and  child Cognitive Function and Intelligence Quotient. Five  studies revealed that elevated maternal BMI has also  been positively associated with difficulties with  emotional regulation and high inattention scores while 3  studies showed no a association between maternal BMI  and the risk Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in  the offspring. Mixed findings have also been reported for  the association between maternal weight and risk of  autism spectrum disorders. Two studies have found that  children born to obese mothers were more likely to be  diagnosed with autism. Other two studies showed that  this risk is further exacerbated in offspring of obese  women who gain excess weight during pregnancy.  However, 3 studies did not report a significant  association between maternal obesity and offspring risk  of autism. Conclusion In conclusion, analyses of longitudinal and observational  studies support an association between maternal BMI  and poorer cognitive performance. The relationship  between maternal obesity and offspring risk of  developing attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and  autism spectrum disorder is currently less clear.

Impact of maternal obesity on the cognitive function and mental health of the offspring: a systematic review

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