US programme helps babies beat obesity odds

Elena Nieves a 5-foot-8, 23-year-old recently lost more than 23 kg and looks healthy. But 15 weeks into her third pregnancy, she was gaining the weight back — too fast.

Nieves became the newest member of an experimental program at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago designed to help pregnant mothers keep their weight in check. It is based on new research suggesting that excessive weight gain in pregnancy hurts both mother and her fetus, raising the risk of complications during pregnancy and putting the child at risk for obesity and diabetes later in life.

“We’ve known for a long time that children of overweight mothers are more likely to be overweight themselves,” said Dr Robert Kushner, who directs the Northwestern Comprehensive Centre on Obesity.

US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one quarter of the 4mn births each year in US involve obese women. Obesity raises the risk for hypertension, heart disease and even some cancers. A 2000 report estimated the direct and indirect cost of obesity at $117bn each year.

Kushner said the program at Northwestern is among the first in the country to tackle obesity in pregnancy. But he said researchers had assumed that was simply because the mother passed along her bad eating and lifestyle habits to her child after birth. Now,
animal studies suggest the environment the fetus is growing in influences the genes.

“The whole idea is, as that child comes out of the birth canal, you’ve already imprinted that child’s vulnerability to be overweight,” Kushner said. “It’s like being born with handcuffs on. In this environment, how do they have a fighting chance?” said Kushner, referring to the growing obesity epidemic that affects a third of adults and nearly 17% of children in the US.