Being overweight or obese before pregnancy has been confirmed to increase the risk of delayed physical and cognitive behavioral development in children.
Professors Shin Jin-young, Park Hye-won, and Kim Tae-eun (Courtesy of Konkuk University Medical Center)
Professors Shin Jin-young, Park Hye-won, and Kim Tae-eun (Courtesy of Konkuk University Medical Center)
Konkuk University Medical Center said Friday that a research team led by Professor Shin Jin-young of the Department of Family Medicine, Professor Park Hye-won of the Department of Pediatrics, and Professor Kim Tae-eun of the Department of Clinical Pharmacology conducted the first large-scale study in Korea to combine the results of the National Health Insurance Service's National Health Examination with the Korean Developmental Screening Test (K-DST) administered at infant checkups.
The researchers analyzed data from about 258,400 infants (11 percent) born between 2014 and 2021.
The results showed that a pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) of 25 or higher was associated with increased risk factors for further evaluation in the areas of large muscle, small muscle, social, self-care, cognitive, and language development, and a BMI of 30 or higher was associated with an even higher risk of developmental delay.
In comparison, low pre-pregnancy weight (BMI <18.5) was associated with developmental delays up to two years of age. Still, developmental gains tended to recover after birth with catch-up growth.
Previous studies have shown that obesity during pregnancy affects children's physical and cognitive development through perinatal complications or gestational conditions, including gestational diabetes and hypertension.
However, the new study suggests that obesity itself is likely a direct risk factor for delayed infant and toddler development and that these effects may persist beyond the neonatal period and into early childhood.
This month, the team won the Best Oral Presentation Award at the 61st spring meeting of the Korean Society for the Study of Obesity.
“Proper weight management in women of childbearing age is essential for the healthy development of their children,” the researchers said. “We plan to propose more specific prevention and management strategies in future studies.”
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Kim Kyoung-Won kkw97@docdocdoc.co.kr
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