Obese Women Lose Their Infants Twice as Often

Swedish researchers have found that obese mothers are twice as likely to lose their baby after birth. Moreover, the higher weight a woman has in the early period of pregnancy, the more risk she will face.

Researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm have found that the babies born to mothers with obesity are almost two and a half times more likely to die during the first weeks of life. This conclusion was derived from the analysis of the information on more than 1.8 million births in 18 years. 11% of all infant deaths were, according to scientists, associated with overweight or obese mothers. However, the supporters of the fight against obesity are not ashamed to share the results of the study of women with excess weight.

In general, 5,428 infant deaths were recorded during this period, which is 2.9 cases per 1 000 people. Two-thirds of the deaths occurred within the first 28 days of babies’ life; they were caused by congenital abnormalities or asphyxia at birth (when the baby’s brain and other organs do not receive enough oxygen before, during or immediately after birth).

The report also took into account the data on infections and sudden infant death syndrome. If a woman’s body mass index was significantly higher than the rate in the initial period of pregnancy, the child mortality in this group of women grew from 2.4 per 1,000 to 5.8. Previous studies have also shown that the body mass index of a woman above 30 years increases the risk of infant mortality, but the results obtained were not consistent.