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Trends in Obesity and Implications for the Fetus

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Diet, Nutrition, and Fetal Programming

Part of the book series: Nutrition and Health ((NH))

Abstract

Obesity is a worldwide pandemic. The high prevalence of obesity and the projected increasing trend have adverse implications for pregnant women including thromboembolic complications, gestational diabetes, hypertension, cesarean section, maternal hemorrhage, and infection. Maternal obesity has a measureable impact on infant and future adult health. Offspring are at increased risk for spontaneous miscarriage, fetal malformations, fetal macrosomia, stillbirth, and preterm delivery. This review focuses on the trends in maternal obesity and its implications for maternal and fetal health as well as evidence suggesting that the pre-pregnancy and the prenatal period provide a window of opportunity to intervene and curtail the intergenerational cycle of obesity.

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Abbreviations

ACOG:

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

BMI:

Body mass index

HSE:

Health Survey for England

IOM:

Institute of Medicine

PRAMS:

Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System

WHO:

World Health Organization

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA

    Jamie O. Lo MD & Antonio E. Frias MD

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  1. Jamie O. Lo MD
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  2. Antonio E. Frias MD
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Correspondence to Jamie O. Lo MD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition, King's College, London, United Kingdom

    Rajkumar Rajendram

  2. Department of Nutrition, King's College, London, United Kingdom

    Victor R. Preedy

  3. Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Westminster, London, United Kingdom

    Vinood B. Patel

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Lo, J.O., Frias, A.E. (2017). Trends in Obesity and Implications for the Fetus. In: Rajendram, R., Preedy, V., Patel, V. (eds) Diet, Nutrition, and Fetal Programming. Nutrition and Health. Humana Press, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60289-9_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60289-9_13

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