The environmental exposure in the first 1000 days of life is closely related with the risk of metabolic diseases in adulthood. Within the first 1000 days of life, three main nutritional phases of human dietary development can be identified, i.e. the prenatal phase, the breast/formula feeding phase, and the complementary and early diet phase. The nutritional risk factors during these three phases are:the higher maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index, the excess maternal gestational weight gain, the maternal diabetes mellitus, and the genetic predisposition in the prenatal phase; the formula feeding induced accelerated growth curve, the high energy intake, the high protein intake, and the low polyunsaturated fatty acids intake in the breast/formula feeding phase; and the rapid weight gain, the early introduction of solids, the high protein intake, and the gut microbiome in the complementary and early diet phase. This paper systematically reviews the multiple obesity-related risk factors exposed in the first 1000 days of life, to provide a theoretical evidence of how to realize the early-life prevention and control of metabolic diseases in adulthood.

early-life nutrition  /  obesity  /  metabolic programming