 |
| Keeping a healthy weight during pregnancy is important for mother and child |
Children born to obese and overweight mothers are more likely to die early of heart disease, a study has found.
Scottish research showed a 35% higher risk of dying before the age of 55 in adults whose mothers were obese in pregnancy.
It is not known how much of the link is down to genetics, influences in the womb or later lifestyle.
But the authors say their findings, in the British Medical Journal, are of "major public health concern".
One woman in five in the UK is obese at their antenatal booking appointment.
Premature deaths
The analysis included 28,540 women whose weight was recorded at their first antenatal check-up and their 37,709 children now aged between 34 and 61.
One in five mothers was classed as overweight with a body mass index (BMI) between 25 and 29.9 and 4% were obese with a BMI above 30.
There were 6,551 premature deaths from any cause and heart disease was the leading contributor.
The risk of premature death was 35% higher among people born to obese mothers compared with those whose mothers had had normal weight in pregnancy. This was after adjusting the results for factors such as the mother's age at delivery, social class and infant birthweight.
The results also revealed that children born to obese mothers went on to be at 42% increased risk of being treated in hospital for a heart attack, stroke or angina.
More here.
Helpful Links:
No comments:
Post a Comment