Women Pregnancy

Obese women can gain little or no weight during pregnancy — and even lose a few pounds — without harming their babies and that there is no need to eat for two people, new research suggests. The researchers stated that those severely obese and pregnant should actually lose weight during pregnancy. Researchers from St. Louis University School of Medicine held a population-based study to look at the effects of weight gain during pregnancy in obese women. They looked at over 120,000 obese pregnant women to come to their conclusions.

The study found that women of different weights should gain different amounts of weight during their pregnancy, while some of the more obese women would be better off losing some of the extra pounds. The Institute of Medicine???s current guidelines say women should gain at least 15 pounds during pregnancy, without placing an upper limit on pregnancy weight gain.
“Not only were there no deleterious effects, but there are benefits,” said study author Dr. Raul Artal of Saint Louis University School of Medicine.

By analyzing the results of their study, the researchers were able to come up with optimal ranges of weight gain:
- for a BMI of 30-34.9, the best outcomes came with a weight gain of 10 to 25 pounds
- for a BMI of 35-39.9, gaining less than nine pounds was best
- for those with a BMI over 40, losing up to nine pounds was best.
Investigators say pregnancy is a big factor in the obesity crisis. Study author Raul Artal, M.D., says, ???Weight gain increases in subsequent pregnancies because women accumulate weight with each pregnancy and don???t lose it.??? He says it really comes down to mom to control the rest of the family. They write, ???This is a multi-generational problem. The behavior modification starts with mom. If mothers are overeating and not exercising, that???s how the rest of the family is likely to behave.???

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