30 Aug Weight Gain Early In Pregnancy Linked To Higher Birthweight Babies
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Dr. Redman
Leanne M. Redman MS, PhD
LPFA Endowed Fellowship
Associate Professor
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Two well-documented risk factors for aberrant weight gain and obesity is whether your mother was obese when she was pregnant and the amount of weight she gained.
Up until now few studies have asked questions about whether the pattern of weight gain in pregnancy affect outcomes in offspring, such as birth weight.
In a cohort of over 16,000 pregnant women and infants, we found that regardless of the obesity status (BMI) of the mother at the time of pregnancy, weight gain that occurs up until week 24, had the strongest effect on infant birth weight. Infants born to mothers who had weight gain in excess of the 2009 IOM guidelines from conception until week 24, had a 2.5 times higher likelihood of being born large for gestational age. The weight gain that occurred after 24 weeks until delivery, did not attenuate this risk.
MedicalResearch.com: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report?
Response: The entire prenatal period from conception to delivery is critical for the future development of a child. This paper supports a growing body of literature that points to the events around conception and early in pregnancy to be potentially the most important.
MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?
Response: Future studies are needed to focus on helping couples to reach optimal health at conception.
MedicalResearch.com: Thank you for your contribution to the MedicalResearch.com community.
Note: Content is Not intended as medical advice. Please consult your health care provider regarding your specific medical condition and questions.
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Last Updated on August 30, 2017 by Marie Benz MD FAAD