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Intervention helped obese women limit weight gain during pregnancy
Conventional weight-loss techniques could help limit weight gain during pregnancy among obese women, according to recent study findings published in Obesity.
“Most interventions to limit weight gain among obese women during pregnancy have failed, but our study shows that with regular contact and support, these women can limit the amount of weight they gain, which will also reduce the risk of complications during and after pregnancy,” Kimberly Vesco, MD, MPH, clinical investigator with the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research in Portland, Ore., said in a press release.
Vesco and colleagues conducted a randomized controlled trial of 114 obese women who were between 7 and 21 weeks’ gestation to determine the effect of an intervention (n=56) or usual care control conditions (n=58). The intervention included attending weekly group meeting, weigh-ins, personalized caloric goals, and food and exercise diaries. Usual care included one meeting with a dietitian in which participants received general information about diet and exercise for a healthy pregnancy.
Fifty-six percent of all participants had class II or III obesity. At randomization, the participants had a mean maternal BMI of 36.7 and weight of 99.7 kg.
From baseline to 2 weeks postpartum, mean weight decreased by 0.6 kg, and from baseline to 34 weeks gestation, weight increased by 6.8 kg, leading to a rate of weight gain of 0.36 kg/week.
The intervention group had a 2.6-kg decline in weight from baseline to 2 weeks postpartum compared with a 1.2-kg increase in the control group (P<.001).
The intervention group gained less weight (P<.001), had a lower rate of weight gain and a lower prevalence of weight gain exceeding the 2009 Institute of Medicine guidelines (P<.001) compared with the control group from baseline to 34 weeks gestation.
Differences were not found between the two groups for mean birth weight, birth weight adjusted for gestational age or weight for gestational age. However, the intervention group had a lower rate of newborns who were large for gestational age compared with the control group (9% vs. 26%; P=.02).
“Most women in our intervention did gain some weight, but they gained and retained significantly less than women who did not participate in the intervention,” Vesco said in the release. “Even with support, it’s difficult to limit weight gain during pregnancy, so women who are overweight or obese should aim for the lower end of the weight-gain range recommended by the Institute of Medicine, and they should seek support and nutritional advice to help meet their goals.”
Disclosure: The study was funded in part by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.