International journal of epidemiology
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Animal models have suggested that undernutrition during gestation and the early postnatal period may adversely affect kidney development and compromise renal function. As a natural experiment, famines provide an opportunity to test such potential effects in humans. We assessed whether exposure to the Chinese famine of 1959-1961 during gestation and early postnatal life was associated with the levels of proteinuria among female adults three decades after exposure to the famine. ⋯ Severe undernutrition during gestation and the early postnatal period may have long-term effects on levels of proteinuria in humans, but the effect sizes may be small.