"The idea of the human baby as an efficient extraction of nutrients from mother is completely wrong," said Barker, also a professor of medicine at Oregon Health and Science University. Muscle growth also can be sacrificed, as an undernourished fetus will try to maintain levels of blood glucose by making its muscles resistant to the effects of insulin. This thrifty handling of sugar turns into a liability after birth, when sugar from freely available food floods the blood and obesity can make the body even more resistant to insulin, which leads to diabetes.