Weight gain in infancy linked to obesity in later life |
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Sun, 16 Oct 2005 06:05
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LONDON - Babies who are quick weight gainers are at a higher risk of becoming obese in future life, says a review of 24 studies in the British Medical Journal. The report of the review was published online today.
The review says that a huge size in early life is very difficult to overcome and in most cases remains constant throughout, "In the majority of studies the infants who were heaviest or those with the highest body mass index (BMI), and those who gained weight more rapidly in the first two years of life were more at risk of obesity," said Dr Janis Baird, of the University of Southampton. It was found that this observation held true for obesity in childhood, adolescence and adulthood.
This trend of hefty babies developing into obese individuals was found to prevail in the U.S., Britain, other European countries as well as some developing countries. The period during which this observation held true was from 1927 to 1994. "Taken with other evidence, our review suggests that both prenatal and infant growth trajectories may be important in predicting adult obesity," write the researchers in the October 14 issue of BMJ.
The authors also believe that external factors during or before infancy, which play a role in the growth of the infant, also influence the development of obesity in later life.
“What is needed are in-depth studies to try to understand better the pattern of growth in infancy and also to look at the factors that are associated with it," says Baird adding that strategies to tackle obesity should take weight gain in infancy into consideration.
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BMJ 