Maternal body mass index: Relation with infant respiratory symptoms and infections
Ashley Rajappan1, Anna Pearce2, Hazel M Inskip3,4
1University College Medical School, University College London, London, UK.
Insights
Maternal obesity increases infant risks for wheeze, cough, and lower respiratory infections. These risks persist regardless of paternal BMI, suggesting intrauterine influences on infant respiratory health.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Maternal Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Maternal obesity is a growing public health concern globally.
- Existing research links maternal obesity to childhood asthma, but less is known about its impact on infant respiratory infections and other symptoms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between maternal body mass index (BMI) and infant respiratory health.
- To examine the relationship between maternal BMI and reported wheeze, cough, and respiratory infections in the first year of life.
Main Methods:
- A study of 2799 mother-child pairs assessed maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and pregnancy weight gain.
- Infant outcomes included wheeze, prolonged cough, lower respiratory tract infection, croup, and ear infections before age one.
- Maternally reported paternal BMI was used to control for shared familial factors.
Main Results:
- Higher maternal BMI correlated with increased risks of infant wheeze, prolonged cough, and lower respiratory tract infections.
- These associations remained significant after adjusting for paternal BMI.
- No link was found between maternal BMI and infant croup, ear infections, or gastrointestinal issues like diarrhea or vomiting.
Conclusions:
- Elevated maternal BMI is associated with a higher incidence of wheeze, cough, and lower respiratory tract infections in infants.
- The findings suggest potential intrauterine effects of maternal obesity on infant respiratory and immune system development.
- Pregnancy weight gain did not show a significant association with infant respiratory symptoms.
Background:
Maternal obesity is increasingly prevalent in many westernized countries. Many studies report associations between maternal obesity and childhood wheeze or asthma but few have considered maternal obesity in relation to respiratory infections or symptoms other than wheeze during infancy. This study assesses the relationship between maternal BMI and reported wheeze, cough and respiratory infections during the first year of life.
Methods:
In 2799 mother-child pairs, we examined the relations between maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and pregnancy weight gain and reported offspring wheeze, prolonged cough, lower respiratory tract infection, croup, and ear infection before age 1 year, along with reported diarrhea or vomiting. Maternally reported paternal BMI was included in the models as a proxy for unmeasured confounding by shared familial factors.
Results:
Higher maternal BMI was associated with increased risks of offspring wheeze, prolonged cough and lower respiratory tract infection (relative risks (95%CI) per 5 kg/m2 1.09 (1.05-1.13), 1.09 (1.03-1.14), and 1.13 (1.07-1.20), respectively). These associations remained after adjusting for maternally reported paternal BMI. No associations were found with croup, ear infection, or diarrhea or vomiting. Pregnancy weight gain was not associated with any of the offspring symptoms or illnesses.
Discussion:
Higher maternal BMI is associated with increased risk of wheeze, cough, and maternally reported lower respiratory tract infection in infancy. These associations were independent of maternally reported paternal BMI. These observations might be explained by intrauterine effects of maternal obesity upon respiratory or immune development.
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