Just like in the fairy tale where the papa bear was too much, baby bear was too little, and mama bear got it just right, so should real-life moms-to-be when it comes to getting their pregnancy weight just right.  Too much or too little at this crucial time can lead to health risks for both mother and baby.

Meera Viswanathan, PhD, of RTI International, served as study director during a collaborative review conducted by RTI and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill’s Evidence-based Practice Center.  The study was funded by the US Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the American Diabetic Association.  The study involved the assessment of 150 previously conducted studies for both short-term and long-term effects of weight gain during pregnancy to mothers, their fetuses, and the children they bore.  All studies included in the assessment were published in the English language from January 1990 to October 2007.

One key finding from the assessment is that there is a strong association between excess weight gain during pregnancy and high growth rate of the fetus and the newborn.  Babies born too large are at risk of long-term health issues, while the mother is more prone to need cesarean delivery and to retain weight after giving birth.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, inadequate weight gain during pregnancy can lead to impaired fetal growth, low birth weight, and premature delivery.

Two factors prompted the analysis - today’s increasing number of overweight and obese American women and the fact that more and more pregnant women are gaining weight in excess of the amount recommended by the Institute of Medicine in 1990.  Increased risk of pregnancy-related complications such as cesarean deliveries and diabetes are of growing concern to public health officials.

Viswanathan would like to see a more comprehensive assessment of the situation that includes women of all ages, ethnicities, and body mass index before pregnancy in order to conduct a more precise analysis.  She also cites the need for standardized measures and definitions to produce a more comprehensive analysis of the effect of weight gain during pregnancy to both the mother and child.

Source: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill