Men’s exercise habits may impact health of future children

“Dad bod” may be socially acceptable, but it can have an effect on those dads’ future children.

Men who exercise before the conception of their children might be able to pass on to their kids a predisposition for a healthier metabolism, even if the father typically consumes a mostly high-fat diet, according to the research, published in the journal Diabetes.

Researchers at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center split male mice into four groups: two were fed high fat diets and two had normal diets.

Within those groups, some mice were sedentary and others were free to exercise.

Researchers found that both sets of mice that exercised, no matter their diet, had healthier offspring.

“What was really interesting to us is that we saw the effects of the paternal exercise in both the male and female offspring,” said researcher Kristin Stanford. “And we saw that it really improved glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity, and decrease fat mass in the female offspring in particular, really throughout their lifespan.”

Researchers also found a difference in offspring of male mice who became more active just one month before conception.