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Autism: What if the mother’s intestinal balance during pregnancy played an unexpected role?
What if the mother’s womb was much more than a nest for the unborn baby? Scientists have just discovered a surprising mechanism: the mother’s gut microbiota, and more specifically an immune molecule, could influence the child’s neurological development. This discovery reignites the quest to understand autism spectrum disorders.
In recent years, science has continually rediscovered the importance of our gut. This true “second brain” is home to billions of bacteria that are constantly communicating with our bodies. Today, a new study goes a step further by focusing on a key period: pregnancy. What if the mother-to-be’s microbiota could, from the very beginning, influence her child’s brain development?