​Parental health is increasingly recognized as one of the strongest predictors of childhood health outcomes (Jawaid et al., 2021).

Over the last three decades, researchers have made considerable progress understanding how maternal health contributes to children’s health.

For example, maternal immune alterations (such as infections or autoimmunity) can act as a primer for a range of psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) in offspring (Kentner et al., 2019).

Animal models of maternal immune activation (MIA) have helped to uncover the mechanisms which may underlie this increased susceptibility, and the sex differences in their presentation.

These advancements have resulted in novel diagnostic and therapeutic tools (Kentner et al., 2019).

Nevertheless, maternal health is only half of the story – what about paternal health? In a recent paper in Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, Liao et al. (2024) demonstrate that paternal immune activation (PIA) has multigenerational and sex-specific effects on offspring behaviors.

They further highlight paternal epigenetic changes that may underlie these developmental alterations, paving promising directions for future research.

​Due to the duality of possible effects, the potential benefits of a ketogenic diet in pregnancy should be considered carefully.

​ Moreover, there is a need for more human studies determining the safety of the ketogenic diet for both the fetus and the mother.