BackgroundRapid infant weight gain during the first 6 months is associated with future risk of obesity although lower weight at 1 year of age is associated with early adiposity rebound.ObjectivesTo evaluate the relationship between maternal depressive symptoms and infant weight and 6 and 12 months of age.MethodsWe recruited Latina mothers prenatally and followed the infants to 12 months of age. Maternal depressive symptoms were assessed prenatally and postnatally. Logistic regression models were used to assess independent predictors for infant overweight at 12 months and excessive weight gain at 6 months of age.ResultsWe enrolled 201 mother‐infant pairs. We had a high rate of infant overweight at 12 months (27.6%) and 38.5% experienced rapid infant weight gain at 6 months. In multivariate logistic regression models, independent predictors for infant overweight at 12 months was the absence of maternal depressive symptoms (odds ratio [OR], 0.17; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.04‐0.78) and macrosomic birthweight (OR= 3.65; 95% CI, 1.03‐12.88). In multivariate logistic regression models, we found that depressive symptoms were associated with decreased risk for rapid weight gain (OR=0.27; 95%CI, 0.09‐0.77) as was increased infant birthweight (OR 0.997; 95%CI, 0.996‐0.998).ConclusionOur study found that maternal depressive symptoms were associated with reduced infant weight at 6 and 12 months of age.