Gaining too much or too little weight during pregnancy could increase the risk of having an overweight or obese child.
Researchers conducted one of the largest studies "regarding pregnancy weight gain in relation to childhood obesity," a Kaiser Permanente news release reported.
The research team looked at the records of 4,145 racially diverse women to make their findings. The team also reviewed the files of the children who were between the ages of two and five years old.
In the women who gained more than the recommended weight during pregnancy 20.4 of the chidden were overweight or obese compared to 19.5 percent in women gained less than the recommended amount of weight and 14.5 percent in women who gained weight within medical guidelines.
The researchers also found that women who had a healthy Body Mass Index (BMI) before pregnancy and gained less than the recommended amount of weight were 63 percent more likely to have a child who was overweight or obese. Women with a normal BMI before pregnancy who gained too much weight were 80 percent more likely to have a child who was underweight or obese.
"The stronger association we found among normal weight women who gained too much or too little weight during pregnancy suggests that perhaps weight gain in pregnancy may have an impact on the child that is independent of genetic factors," senior investigator Monique M. Hedderson, PhD, Kaiser Permanente Division of Research said in the news release.
"Gaining either too little or too much weight in pregnancy may permanently affect mechanisms that manage energy balance and metabolism in the offspring, such as appetite control and energy expenditure," lead author Sneha Sridhar, MPH, Kaiser Permanente Division of Research said in the news release. "This could potentially have long-term effects on the child's subsequent growth and weight."
