Experimental studies also have demonstrated that maternal nutritional status before and in early pregnancy influences not only fetal growth trajectory but also development of the fetal glucosee
insulin axis and, in turn, postnatal glucose tolerance and insulin
sensitivity. In sheep, moderate maternal nutrient restriction from
two months prior to mating and continuing only one month into a
five-month pregnancy (with ad-libitum intake thereafter)
decreased fetal growth trajectory in late gestation.