Association Between Maternal Prepregnancy and Pregnancy Body Mass Index and Children's Telomere Length: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Telomeres maintain chromosome stability and mark cellular aging, and their shortening with age compromises genomic stability. The purpose of this study was to conduct a meta-analysis of existing evidence to evaluate the relationship between the maternal pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and children's telomere length (TL). Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed databases were systematically searched from their inception to August 27, 2023, for pertinent observational studies. The random-effects meta-analysis was conducted on eligible studies that investigated the linear relationship between exposure and the outcomes of interest, utilizing the reported β-coefficient. Cochran's Q test and I2 statistics were used to assess heterogeneity. A significant association was observed between maternal pregnancy BMI and children's TL (32 studies, pooled effect size [ES]: -0.04; 95% CI: -0.06 to -0.01; I2 = 47.51%, P