The Diary of a CEO

Jessie Inchauspé: Why your pregnancy diet rewrites fetal DNA

Through your glucose, choline, and omega-3 intake, pregnancy flips epigenetic switches; juice acts more like Coke than fruit during these critical months.

JIJessie InchauspéguestSBSteven Bartletthost

Feb 26, 2026·1h 36m·Watch on YouTube ↗

📖 CHAPTERS

1. 1

   Pregnancy nutrition as epigenetic “programming” (and why moms aren’t to blame)

   Jessie frames pregnancy as a window where a mother’s diet can switch genes on/off in the baby via epigenetics, shaping development and long-term disease risk. She argues most mothers are under-informed due to a broken food system and misleading cultural messaging, not personal failure.

2. 2

   Blood sugar rollercoasters: mood, relationships, and compulsive behavior

   The conversation opens with how glucose spikes and crashes affect daily life beyond weight—especially mood stability, irritability, and decision-making. Jessie and Steven connect glucose crashes to dopamine-seeking behaviors and reduced willpower.

3. 3

   Modern fruit, juice myths, and how “healthy” labels mislead

   Jessie explains that many fruits have been selectively bred to be sweeter and less fibrous, and that processing fruit into juice removes the protective fiber. She highlights how marketing terms like “no added sugar,” “gluten-free,” or “vegan” can obscure high-sugar reality.

4. 4

   Fertility prep: what both partners can do before conception

   Steven asks about fertility, and Jessie emphasizes that both men and women can improve outcomes with lifestyle changes. She notes sperm quality is responsive to diet, alcohol, exercise, and general metabolic health in the months leading up to conception.

5. 5

   How pregnancy works biologically: trimesters, placenta, and the ‘baby gets what’s there’ myth

   Jessie gives a practical primer on pregnancy timelines, how nourishment shifts from uterine secretions to placenta-mediated blood exchange, and why nutrition quality matters. She challenges the common claim that the baby automatically takes everything it needs.

6. 6

   Choline: the brain-building nutrient most pregnancies miss (and why eggs matter)

   Jessie spotlights choline as a critical, under-consumed nutrient essential for neuron formation and brain regions tied to memory and attention. She shares evidence, prevalence statistics, and pragmatic ways to reach intake targets.

7. 7

   Breastfeeding vs formula: what ‘alive’ milk means and what to check in formula

   Jessie distinguishes breast milk as biologically active—carrying signaling molecules that may extend epigenetic programming—while acknowledging formula can be nutritionally complete and necessary. She encourages parents using formula to scrutinize nutrient content.

8. 8

   Sugar in pregnancy: epigenetic risk, historic natural experiment, and inflammation pathways

   The discussion turns to why added sugars (especially fructose-heavy sweets) are uniquely unhelpful during pregnancy and can affect fetal programming. Jessie cites the UK sugar ration as long-term evidence and connects maternal hyperglycemia to inflammation and brain development theories.

9. 9

   Gestational diabetes isn’t random: early screening, CGMs, and why muscle protects

   Jessie argues that gestational diabetes often reflects pre-existing glucose dysregulation, detectable early. She and Steven discuss CGMs for learning and prediction, and why muscle mass and movement act as major glucose ‘sinks.’

10. 10

    Practical glucose-control toolkit: meal order, movement, and micro-exercises

    Jessie lays out actionable “glucose hacks” to blunt spikes, focusing on movement after meals and fiber-first eating. They also test a standing-desk idea and discuss realistic ways to fit activity into everyday life.

11. 11

    Exercise during pregnancy: brain benefits and the ‘soil and seed’ metaphor

    Jessie argues exercise is beneficial in pregnancy, sharing animal data linking maternal activity to better offspring learning and lower anxiety. She uses a plant/soil analogy to explain how nutrients and environment shape developmental trajectories without deterministic fear.

12. 12

    Alcohol, caffeine, fermented foods, keto, and the glucose vs sugar distinction

    A rapid-fire section addresses common pregnancy controversies. Jessie strongly discourages alcohol, advises moderation on caffeine, notes early evidence for fermented foods, cautions on keto, and clarifies that the fetus needs glucose from starches—not fructose from sweets.

13. 13

    Supplements that matter: omega-3 (DHA), iron, and smarter prenatals

    Jessie shares what she took and why, centering on DHA for fetal brain connectivity and iron for maternal depletion later in pregnancy. She also emphasizes quality markers in prenatal vitamins, including choline inclusion and methylated folate.

14. 14

    Protein as a pregnancy non-negotiable (plus GLP-1 concerns, label-reading, stress, and closing message)

    Jessie calls protein the most underappreciated lever in pregnancy and ties low protein to fetal programming for smaller lifelong muscle mass. The episode closes with warnings about GLP-1 drugs in pregnancy, advice on reading ingredients over calories, reflections on miscarriage and stress, and a policy-focused message about fixing the food environment for families.