Obesity During Pregnancy Contributes to Birth Defects, Study Finds

Note from Connie: In my book SUGAR SHOCK!, I discussed research, which suggests that if you’re pregnant and eat lots of sweets and other culprit carbs, you could deliver a baby with birth defects. Now comes another new study about how obese and overweight women have greater risk of delivering babies with birth defects than non-obese mothers. Karen James brings us info about alarming study.

Obese mothers have a four percent risk of delivering babies with birth defects compared to a three percent risk for non-obese mothers, according to a recently published study funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and reported on by the Associated Press (AP) and other news organizations.

The findings of the study, which appears in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine and which was headed by lead author Kim Waller, Ph.D. of the University of Texas, babies of obese and overweight mothers were born with a number of abnormalities, including heart and limb defects, as well as diaphragmatic hernia and omphalocele. What’s more, obese women were at greatest risk — twice that of healthy weight women — for delivering babies with spina bifida.

How maternal obesity and birth defects are linked remains unclear, according to the study. However, researchers speculate that poor eating habits or diabetes—which can both contribute to obesity—may result in mother’s receiving too few crucial nutrients like folic acid that can help protect against some birth defects.

Karen James for the SUGAR SHOCK! Blog