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Eat Too much During Pregnancy Increases Child's Obesity Risk
Women who put on a lot of weight during pregnancy significantly increase their child’s risk of becoming overweight or obese, a study has claimed.
Not exercising and smoking while pregnant also raises the chances that the child will be fat by the age of eight, the researchers said. For the study, researchers from the University of Texas and Harokopio University randomly selected more than 5,000 children from a national database in Greece and matched them with their mothers. The database records showed the child’s body mass index, and the researchers carried out telephone interviews with the mothers to collect information about their pregnancies. High amounts of weight gain, low levels of physical activity and smoking while pregnant were strongly associated with obesity in the child at age eight. However, moderate exercise during pregnancy was found to significantly lower the risk of the baby becoming overweight or obese in childhood, even after adjusting for the other maternal and child characteristics, the researchers said.
Writing in the journal BMC Pregnancy and Childhood, the researchers concluded: ‘Healthcare professionals should strongly advise women to not smoke and to perform moderate exercise during pregnancy to prevent obesity in the offspring in later life.’ Professor Labros Sidossis, one of the researchers, added: ‘Pregnancy is a phase in a woman’s life in which she develops a greater awareness about her health and has an important opportunity to amend some unhealthy habits.’ The amount of weight a woman should put on during pregnancy depends on their previous weight, according to NHS advice. Most pregnant women will gain between 10kg and 12.5kg (22lbs to 26lbs), putting most of the weight on after week 20. Much of the extra weight is due to the baby growing, but the mother’s body will also be storing fat, ready to produce breast milk when the baby is born. Gaining too little weight can also be a problem, increasing the risk of a premature birth and a baby with a low birth weight, doctors warn. The NHS also advises that pregnant women should keep up their normal daily physical activity or exercise for as long as they feel comfortable. However they should be careful not to exhaust themselves - a general rule is that they should still be able to hold a conversation while exercising. Women who were not regularly exercising before they became pregnant should start slowly, beginning with no more than 15 minutes of continuous exercise, three times a week, and gradually increasing the duration.
Written By Sophie Freeman Retrieved From:
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