WASHINGTON: You may want to sweat off those extra kilos before conceiving as according to a recent study, going into your pregnancy overweight means you could be putting your baby's health at risk.
The analysis of published studies found that compared with children of normal weight mothers, children whose mothers were overweight or obese prior to pregnancy had 17% and 51% increased risks for compromised neurodevelopmental outcomes, respectively.
Pre-pregnancy obesity was linked with a 62% increased risk of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, a 36% increased risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder, a 58% increased risk of developmental delay, and a 42% increased risk of emotional/behavioral problems.
"Like avoiding smoking during pregnancy, this review of over 40 articles suggests that maintaining a healthy weight during pregnancy may also be important to a child's brain development," said senior author Bernard Fuemmeler of the Virginia Commonwealth University.
The study appears in journal Obesity Reviews.