Obese Pregnant Women Face a Tougher Pregnancy

According to a study carried out by researchers at the University of North Carolina and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health, pregnant women who are overweight or obese make slower progress through labour, than do normal weight women. The study concluded that since a longer labour is a governing factor for considering a Caesarian section, the new findings mean a doctor may also need to take the pregnant woman's weight into account before deciding to recommend this procedure.

The study results can be found in the November issue of "Obstetrics and Gynecology." The study revealed that extra body fat poses serious, sometimes life-threatening risks for both mother and baby. Pregnant women who fit into this category are being advised to seek medical treatment so that they can be monitored more closely.

Duane Alexander, M.D., Director of NICHD said: "An overweight or obese woman contemplating pregnancy should speak with her physician about a diet and exercise programme to help attain a healthy weight before she gets pregnant. A pregnant woman who is overweight or obese should speak to her physician about a diet and exercise programme to help ensure the nutritional needs of her developing fetus."

It has long been known that being overweight or obese can complicate pregnancy. Risks involve developing gestational diabetes, pregnancy related high blood pressure and pre-eclampsia. In this recent study, researchers looked at pregnancy and birth records from 612 women in North Carolina who had given birth to their first child. Their intention was to determined why overweight and obese women are more likely to have a caesarian section. The increase in labour duration was the reason why many of the women ended up having the operation, according to the study's first author, Anjel Vahratian, P.h.D., M.P.H, who conducted the analysis while he was on a research followship in NICHD's Division of Epidemiology, Statistics, and Prevention Research. Dr. Vahratian was a doctoral candidate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill at the time.

Dr. Vahratian stated: "Nearly one-half of the women of childbearing age are either overweight or obese. This finding means that before they recommend a C-section, health care providers need to add to their other considerations a woman's pre-pregnancy weight, as well as how much weight she's gained during the pregnancy."

The researchers looked at the women's body mass index (BMI) in order to determine if they qualified as overweight or obese. A BMI of 26.1 to 29 means a woman is overweight, and above 29 as obese. Active labour took longer for overweight and obese women. This is the part of labour in which the cervix opens to allow the baby through the birth canal. The researchers calculated how long it took for the cervix to dilate from 4cm to 10cm. The findings showed that on average, an overweight woman's labour was 7.5 hours, for obese women this was 7.9 and for normal weight women it was 6.2 hours.

Dr. Vahratian went on to caution overweight women from starting a weight loss regime without first obtaining medical advice. Instead, the doctor suggested seeking early pre-natal care, in order to work closely with the doctor to come up with a safe, nutritional plan for herself and for her growing baby. This will go a long way in helping pregnant women who are overweight or obese to have a safer pregnancy and delivery.

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