Pediatric obesity
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Comparative Study
Stronger influence of maternal than paternal obesity on infant and early childhood body mass index: the Fels Longitudinal Study.
Excessive early childhood adiposity is a prevalent and increasing concern in many parts of the world. Parental obesity is one of the several factors previously associated with infant and early childhood weight, length and adiposity. Parental obesity represents a surrogate marker of the complex interplay among genetic, epigenetic and shared environmental factors, and is potentially modifiable. The relative contributions of maternal and paternal body mass index (BMI) to infant and early childhood growth, as well as the timing of such effects, have not been firmly established. ⋯ At birth and in later infancy, maternal BMI has a stronger influence on BMI growth than paternal BMI, suggesting weight control in reproductive age women may be of particular benefit for preventing excess infant BMI.