Abstract
BackgroundMaternal pre-pregnancy weight has been reported to be positively associated with offspring weight. The association between maternal weight and offspring weight might be explained by maternal lifestyle. We investigated the strength of the relationship between maternal body mass index (BMI) at the beginning of pregnancy and offspring BMI at several growth stages.MethodsThe source population was all eighth graders registered in all public schools in the city of Fukuroi, Japan, in 2012. Records of maternal anthropometry at the beginning of pregnancy were obtained from the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Handbook. The height and body weight of each student were measured. A regression model was used to assess the association between maternal BMI z-score at the beginning of pregnancy and offspring BMI z-score at various ages.ResultsOf the source population, data from the MCH Handbook were obtained for 480 students. Among males, maternal BMI z-score was not associated with offspring BMI z-score at birth and at age 3 years but was associated with offspring BMI z-score at age 13 years (standardized regression coefficient (β) = 0.19; P < 0.01). Among females, maternal BMI z-score was associated with offspring BMI z-score at birth (β = 0.11; P < 0.05), at age 3 years (β = 0.22; P < 0.01) and at age 13 years (β = 0.51; P < 0.01).ConclusionsOur results suggest that the positive association between maternal weight at the beginning of pregnancy and offspring weight around puberty is stronger than that between maternal weight and offspring weight at birth. Maternal lifestyle may influence offspring weight in adolescence.
Highlights
An overweight status, such as obesity, is an important risk factor for non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as diabetes, stroke, coronary heart disease, and hypertension.[1]
There is a growing body of literature suggesting that factors related to the intrauterine nutritional environment, such as maternal body weight during pregnancy, may influence body weight in childhood and adolescence.[3,4]
With regard to relationships between maternal weight and offspring growth patterns, children born to mothers with overweight were reported to show a greater increase in body weight with age.[15,16,17,18,19]
Summary
An overweight status, such as obesity, is an important risk factor for non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as diabetes, stroke, coronary heart disease, and hypertension.[1]. There is a growing body of literature suggesting that factors related to the intrauterine nutritional environment, such as maternal body weight during pregnancy, may influence body weight in childhood and adolescence.[3,4] A number of studies have reported that large gestational weight gain is a potential risk factor for childhood obesity.[5,6,7]. We assessed the relationship between maternal body mass index z-score at the beginning of pregnancy (mBMI-bp) and offspring BMI z-scores at several growth stages (birth, age 3 years, and age 13 years) in a population-based retrospective cohort study and revealed temporal characteristics of the relationship. Maternal pre-pregnancy weight has been reported to be positively associated with offspring weight. We investigated the strength of the relationship between maternal body mass index (BMI) at the beginning of pregnancy and offspring BMI at several growth stages
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