Maternal Imprint: The Contested Science of Maternal-Fetal Effects

Sarah S. Richardson's book explores the idea that a woman's health and behavior during pregnancy can have long-term effects on her descendants' health and welfare, challenging the consensus that a child's fate is set by genes and post-birth upbringing.

Format: Hardback
Length: 376 pages
Publication date: 08 November 2021
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

The notion that a woman's health and behavior during pregnancy can have long-term effects on her descendants' health and welfare has a fascinating and complex history. While this idea has been prevalent in folk intuition and scientific inquiry for centuries, the understanding of its implications has evolved significantly over time. In the early 20th century, when modern genetics emerged, there was a prevailing consensus among biomedical scientists that a mother's influence on her offspring's traits was limited, except in cases of extreme deprivation or injury. The belief was that a child's fate was predetermined by a combination of its genes and post-birth upbringing.

However, over the past fifty years, this consensus has been dismantled, and a new field of research has emerged: the study of the intrauterine environment and its effects on the fetus. This interdisciplinary program of study involves medicine, public health, psychology, evolutionary biology, and genomics, among other fields. Collectively, these sciences argue that a woman's experiences, behaviors, and physiology can have profound life-altering effects on offspring development.

To trace the genealogy of ideas about heredity and maternal-fetal effects, this book offers a critical analysis of conceptual and ethical issues. It explores the staggering implications for maternal well-being and reproductive autonomy that have arisen with the rise of epigenetics and fetal origins science in postgenomic biology. The book examines how these scientific advancements have challenged traditional beliefs about the nature of inheritance and the role of the mother in shaping her offspring's development. It also raises important questions about the potential risks and benefits of interventions aimed at altering the intrauterine environment, such as prenatal genetic testing and interventions to improve maternal health.

In conclusion, the idea that a woman's health and behavior during pregnancy can have long-term effects on her descendants' health and welfare is a complex and multifaceted topic. This book provides a valuable contribution to our understanding of this issue by tracing the historical development of ideas about heredity and maternal-fetal effects and offering a critical analysis of the ethical and conceptual challenges posed by the rise of epigenetics and fetal origins science. It is a must-read for anyone interested in the intersection of gender, science, and reproductive health.

Weight: 614g
Dimension: 159 x 235 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780226544779