Women Tipping the Scale During Pregnancy: A Special Population for Obesity Interventions,Treatments and Clinical Trials

Abstract

New treatments for obesity are often focused on reducing appetite in otherwise healthy adults. Similarly, health guidelines and promotion programs are focused on healthy adults. We have become alarmed by the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity in women of reproductive age. This issue has been equally overlooked in policy debates and clinical trials. The proportion of overweight or obese young women has overwhelmed the proportion of underweight and normal weight women. In order to prevent obesity in women and their offspring, clinical interventions and trials need to be developed for women before and in between pregnancies.