Prepregnancy Overweight and Obesity in Kuwait Birth Cohort Study

This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of prepregnancy obesity and overweight, and to identify a set of sociodemographic factors that could guide weight management interventions for women prior to conception.

Pregnant women (N = 989) were recruited in the Kuwait Birth Cohort Study during the period June 2017 to February 2020. Prepregnancy weight and height were self-reported, while current weight and height were measured in a standardized procedure. Data on sociodemographic factors were collected through face-to-face interviews conducted by a trained data collector. Multinomial logistic regression was used to investigate the association between sociodemographic factors and prepregnancy obesity and overweight.

Among 989 pregnant women (89.26% of the cohort), the prevalence of prepregnancy obesity and overweight was 28.82% (95% CI: 26.08%-31.72%) and 37.92% (95% CI: 34.94%-40.99%), respectively. Only 24 pregnant women (2.43%; 95% CI: 1.63%-3.60%) were underweight prior to pregnancy. Notably, 17.67% of obese and 56.03% of overweight women perceived their weight as normal.

Obesity and overweight prior to pregnancy are extremely high in Kuwait, with more than two-thirds of women affected. Public health interventions targeting obesity in all women, especially those of reproductive age, should be implemented along with lifestyle counseling to optimize prepregnancy weight.