Young children twice as likely to be obese if mother was obese during pregnancy

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Monday, July 05, 2004 1:56 pm Email this article
Among low-income children, a mother's obesity in early pregnancy more than doubles the risk of obesity for the child at the age of 2- to 4-years-old according to a new study from University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

The prevalence of childhood obesity was 9.5 percent at 2 years of age, 12.5 percent at 3 years of age, and 14.8 percent at 4 years of age.

Thirty percent of obese children had obese mothers.

By the age of 4 years old, 24.1 percent of children were obese if their mothers had been obese in the first trimester of pregnancy compared with 9 percent of children whose mothers had been of normal weight (BMI of 18.5 to 25).

The risk of obesity at the age of 2-years-old was 2 times greater among children who’s mothers were obese during the first trimester of their pregnancy, 2.3 times greater at the age of 3-years-old, and 2.3 times greater at the age of 4-years-old.

Obesity among 2- to 4-year-olds was defined as a body mass index (BMI)  greater than or equal to the 95th percentile for their age and gender.

REFERENCE

Whitaker R. Predicting preschooler obesity at birth: the role of maternal obesity in early pregnancy. Pediatrics. 2004 Jul, 114(1):E29-36.

AUTHOR’S AFFILIATION

Department of Pediatrics
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and the
Division of General and Community Pediatrics
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
Cincinnati, Ohio

Articles on the same subject can be found here:

• Childhood Obesity