ECEESPE2025 ePoster Presentations Metabolism, Nutrition and Obesity (164 abstracts)
Maternal obesity and gestational weight gain: impact on childhood obesity - a 12 year retrospective cohort study
Margarida Sobral 1 , Bárbara Jesus 1 , Mariana Coelho 1 , Leonor Rodrigues 1 , Alice Monsanto 1 , Tânia Carvalho 1 , Gustavo Rodrigues 1,2 , Ana Sofia Lopes 1 , Joana Guiomar 1 , Carolina Moreno 1,2 & Leonor Gomes 1,2
1Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism Department - Coimbra’s Local Health Unit, Coimbra, Portugal; 2Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
JOINT3223
Introduction: Maternal obesity and excessive gestational weight gain are associated with childhood obesity through various mechanisms. According to international recommendations, weight gain during pregnancy for obese women (BMI ≥30 kg/m2) should not exceed 9 kg. This study aims to analyze the weight evolution of children born to obese mothers and the association between preconception BMI and gestational weight gain with childhood BMI, based on WHO percentile curves.
Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 48 children whose mothers, diagnosed with obesity, were monitored during pregnancy in endocrinology/obstetrics consultations between 2010 and 2011. Maternal anthropometric data were collected during successive consultations, and children’s growth data were recorded from birth to 12 years of age.
Results: The 48 women considered, had an average preconception BMI of 37.2 (±2.24) kg/m2. A total of 64.6% of the women experienced excessive weight gain (>9 kg) during pregnancy. 12 of these women had been diagnosed with gestational diabetes, but were controlled with dietary measures. The average birth weight was 3,426.4 g (±388.325), with 22.9% (n = 11) classified as large for gestational age (weight above the 90th percentile). At 12 months, 37.5% of the children (n = 19) were above the 85th percentile for weight, and 20.8% (n = 10) were above the 97th percentile. By 3 years of age, 37.5% (n = 19) were classified as obese, and 27.1% (n = 13) were overweight. The prevalence of overweight and obesity continued to rise throughout childhood, reaching 66.7% at 6 years (n = 33), 83.3% at 10 years (n = 40), and 77.2% at 12 years (n = 37). Regarding gestational weight gain, a positive correlation was found between excessive maternal weight gain and higher degrees of childhood obesity (P <0.05). Additionally, while higher pre-pregnancy obesity classes showed a trend toward increased childhood obesity, this association did not reach statistical significance (P >0.05).
Conclusion: The prevalence of overweight and obesity in children born to obese mothers tends to increase throughout childhood. Excessive gestational weight gain is positively associated with a higher degree of childhood obesity. This association should encourage health professionals and caregivers the prompt adoption of healthy lifestyle measures in childhood and the implementation of early monitoring and surveillance of this children.
Volume 110
Article tools
My recent searches
My recently viewed abstracts
Authors
Endocrine Abstracts
ISSN 1470-3947 (print) | ISSN 1479-6848 (online)
© Bioscientifica 2025 |
Privacy policy |
Cookie settings
BiosciAbstracts
Bioscientifica Abstracts is the gateway to a series of products that provide a permanent, citable record of abstracts for biomedical and life science conferences.
Find out more