Mom’s weight and baby’s heart
April 27, 2010 by Raquel
Filed under HEART AND STROKE
Excess weight on anyone is associated with a lot of health problems. Excess weight on a pregnant woman is associated with health problems for herself as well as for her baby. Previous research has shown that obesity among pregnant women is linked to cardiovascular problems and gestational diabetes on the maternal side that can cause pregnancy complications. Less is known about the effect of maternal obesity on the fetus but research shows that the apple does not fall far from the tree.
Women are expected to gain weight during pregnancy. However, current estimates indicate that 1 in 5 American women are obese even at the start of pregnancy and will thus gain more weight during the course of the gestation period.
A recent study showed that babies of women who were extremely overweight during pregnancy have higher chances of suffering from congenital heart defects. These are structural defects of the heart at birth and affect 8 in 1,000 newborns in the US. Congenital heart defects can be mild or life-threatening and usually require corrective surgery. Even if corrected, these defects are associated with lifetime health problems.
The researchers analyzed the health records of over 1.5 million births that took place during an 11-year period.
According lead author Dr. James L. Mills, researcher at Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD):
Other infant conditions linked to maternal obesity are type 2 diabetes and neural tube defects.

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