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Children of obese mothers ‘have higher heart risk’
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 during pregnancy.
It is not known how much of the link is down to genetics, influences in the womb or later lifestyle.
One woman in five in the UK is obese at their prenatal medical appointments.
This study emphasizes the need for everyone, but in particular pregnant women, to try to eat healthily and be active”
The analysis included 28,540 women whose weight were 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.
The study results highlighted the importance of current advice to maintain a healthy weight, eat sensibly and keep active during pregnancy. More work is needed to understand the reasons for the increased risk and to look at the impact of weight gain after pregnancy. It would be nice to know how much of this risk is modifiable.
Previous research has shown a link between obesity in pregnancy and changes in appetite control and metabolism in children. Obese people are at higher risk of heart disease, so it is very likely that the people in this study whose mothers were obese were fatter than those whose mothers were lean.
Drastic dieting is not recommended. This study emphasizes the need for everyone, but in particular pregnant women, to try to eat healthily and be active.
via Blogger http://chiropractic-lane.blogspot.com/2013/08/obese-mothers-pass-on-higher-heart-risk.html
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