Bigger weight gain in pregnancy causes bigger babies.

So is it genetic factors or your pregnant body size that determines the size of your baby? A recent report by the LA Times reveals some interesting facts.

“It’s a woman’s weight gain that triggers her baby’s size. In the first study of its kind, researchers at Children’s Hospital Boston examined data from 513,501 women who had two or more live births. The number of babies in the study totaled more than 1.1 million. The researchers compared pregnancy weight gain and birth weights among siblings to control for genetic influences.

Clearly, the mother’s weight gain influenced the baby’s weight. Compared with women who gained 18 to 22 pounds (a healthy weight gain for normal-weight women) pregnant women who gained 44 to 49 pounds were 1.7 times more likely to have a high-birth-weight baby. High birth-weight was defined as 8.8 pounds or more. Women who gained more than 53 pounds were 2.3 times as likely to have a high-birth-weight baby.”

Well that is certainly food for thought!

Sources:
http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-pregnancy-20100804,0,3195262.story?track=rss