Bigger Babies More At Risk Of Child Obesity

April 1, 2009 by tanya
Filed under: Baby Health, News

Researchers are claiming that the amount of weight a baby gains in their first six months may be linked with child obesity.

Elsie Taveras, MD, PhD, from Harvard Medical School, stated “The mounting evidence suggests that infancy may be a critical period during which to prevent childhood obesity and its related consequences.”

The study, published this week in Pediatrics, studied the weight and length of infants at birth, 6 months, and 3 years.

It was found that where there was rapid weight gain in the first six months, there was a higher chance that the child would be obese at age 3. Of the 559 children studied, 9 per cent were obese by 3-years-old.

The study concluded that children in the top percentiles at birth up to 6 months had a 40 per cent risk of being obese later on. This compared to a 1 per cent risk for infants in the bottom percentiles.

Researcher Matthew Gillman, MD, said “At first it may seem implausible that weight gain over just a few months early in infancy could have long-term health consequences, but it makes sense because so much of human development takes place during that period — and even before birth,”