Early life nutritional programming of long-term weight gain and feed intake in the porcine model

We studied the effect of a prenatal and/or postnatal Western-like diet high in fat, refined sugar, and cholesterol on long-term feed intake and growth of piglets. Thirty-two sows and their offspring were allocated to 1 of 4 dietary treatments in a 2×2 factorial design, with 8-week prenatal and 8-week postnatal exposure to a Western-like diet or control diets as factors. From weaning onwards, 4-weekold piglets were housed in groups (n=8) of 3 littermates and fed ad libitum. From the end of the dietary treatment onwards, all piglets were fed a standard commercial diet, and followed for 8 weeks. Piglets exposed to the prenatal Western diet were heavier at weaning than controls. Piglets fed the postnatal Western diet weighed less than controls at the end of the treatment and 8 weeks later. From weaning to the end of the treatment, piglets fed the postnatal Western diet had a lower average daily gain (ADG), gain:feed (G:F) and average daily feed intake (ADFI), but a higher energy intake than controls. During the 8 weeks following the end of the treatment, piglets fed the postnatal Western diet had a 20% decrease in ADFI, but only a 7% decrease in ADG, resulting in a higher G:F. Thus, feeding a high-sugar high-fat diet for only 8-week post-partum can drastically reduce feed intake,and improve feed efficiency in later life.