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Maternal birthweight and diet in pregnancy in relation to the infant's thinness at birth
Article first published online: 19 AUG 2005
DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1997.tb11975.x
Issue
1471-0528/asset/cover.gif?v=1&s=b4e1d96c46e18c61210d584b63c13ee375cf562b "BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology")
BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Volume 104, Issue 6, pages 663–667, June 1997
Additional Information
How to Cite
Godfrey, K. M., Barker, D. J. P., Robinson, S. and Osmond, C. (1997), Maternal birthweight and diet in pregnancy in relation to the infant's thinness at birth. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 104: 663–667. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1997.tb11975.x
Publication History
- Issue published online: 19 AUG 2005
- Article first published online: 19 AUG 2005
- Received 10 May 1996 Accepted 31 January 1997
- Abstract
- Article
- References
- Cited By
Objective To examine how maternal diet in pregnancy and parental body size and birthweight influence an infant's thinness at birth measured by a low ponderal index.
Design An observational study of newborn infants and their parents.
Setting Southampton, England.
Population Five hundred and thirty-eight infants born at term.
Main outcome measure Ponderal index at birth.
Results Women who had a high intake of carbohydrate in early pregnancy and a low intake of dairy protein in late pregnancy tended to have infants that were thin at birth (P= 0.01 and P= 0.03, respectively, in a simultaneous analysis). Women who themselves had a low birthweight also tended to have thin infants, ponderal index falling from 28.3 kg/m3 to 26.2 kg/m3 as the women's birthweights decreased from more than 4.0 kg to 2.5 kg or less (P < 0.0001). Tall fathers had thin infants, but ponderal index was not related to the women's heights or the fathers’ birthweights.
Conclusion These associations may reflect constraints on placental development imposed by a woman's nutrition in pregnancy and during her own intrauterine life. Effects of the father's height may be mediated through genetic influences on skeletal growth.