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Maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index, gestational weight gain and epilepsy in the offspring: A population-based

Jiawen Chen1, Haoran Zhuo2, Tormod Rogne3

  • 1Department of Chronic Disease Epidemiology, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA.

Epilepsy Research
|February 28, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Maternal pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity are linked to a higher risk of childhood epilepsy. However, gestational weight gain patterns did not show a clear association with epilepsy risk in offspring.

Area of Science:

  • Reproductive Health
  • Pediatric Neurology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and gestational weight gain (GWG) are critical factors influencing pregnancy outcomes and offspring health.
  • Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder in childhood with complex etiology.
  • Understanding modifiable maternal factors may offer avenues for prevention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between maternal pre-pregnancy BMI categories and non-optimal GWG with the risk of childhood epilepsy.
  • To analyze these associations in a large cohort of live births in California.

Main Methods:

  • A population-based cohort study of 3,816,438 children born between 2007 and 2015.
  • Childhood epilepsy ascertained via diagnostic records.
  • Generalized linear models used to estimate risk ratios (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI), adjusting for confounders.

Main Results:

  • Maternal pre-pregnancy overweight (RR: 1.12) and obesity (RR: 1.31) were associated with an increased risk of childhood epilepsy.
  • No significant association was found between insufficient or excessive GWG and childhood epilepsy.
  • Gestational weight loss showed an association with epilepsy in offspring of overweight/obese mothers, but this was not significant among term births.

Conclusions:

  • Maternal pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity show a modest association with childhood epilepsy.
  • Non-optimal gestational weight gain, including weight loss, insufficient, or excessive gain, did not demonstrate a clear association with childhood epilepsy risk.
Abstract

Keywords:
Body mass indexEpilepsyGestational weight gainObesityPregnancy

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