High Birthweight Could Cause Health Risks

It has long been believed that giving birth to a large baby meant that it was a healthy baby. However, researchers are learning more and more about the truth behind this belief. Researchers also know that being born too small or with a lower birthweight, can also cause some health issues. Many studies have been conducted over the past few years that have focused on the correlation between high birthweights and other health issues later in life. Researchers are now finding out that having a higher birthweight can also cause significant health risks as well. Health risks that these infants are believed to be subject to include obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
High Birthweight Could Cause Health Risks Although it has been said that having
a baby that is big means that the baby is healthy, researchers are now learning that this may not be the case. According to Big Babies, written by Nathan Seppa (2014), researchers are discovering that a high birthweight can be a sign of a variety of health risks later down the road for the child (p. 22). Some of these health risks could include heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or obesity. Research says that this could be due to a number of different things, such as, the mother being overweight or obese before or during pregnancy. Issues like these could cause the infant to develop diabetes later in life. Research also says that there could be a link between infants having a high birthweight and developing various types of cancers later in life. These types of cancers include breast, brain, colon, and prostate cancers. Another risk the infants with a high birthweight face is heart disease, which could be caused by having “slightly thicker carotid artery walls, a risk for cardiovascular disease, than those with a normal birthweight” (Seppa, 2014, p. 25). Researchers say that some of these issues could be prevented by minimal actions of the mothers, such as dieting and exercising during pregnancy or even prior to a planned pregnancy.

High Birthweight Causing Obesity Researchers are discovering that babies with a higher birthweight are developing obesity later in life.
Researchers have studied babies that were born with below normal, normal, and above normal birthweights and have concluded that being born with a higher birthweight can contribute to the overwhelming problem of obesity. Researchers are calling the babies with higher birthweights, large-for-gestational age (LGA) infants (Cnattinguis, et. al., 2011, p.1320). It is well known that obesity has become a significant problem in today’s times. It is also well known that obesity can put one at a greater risk of other significant health problems. One study conducted in 2011, evaluated the correlation between women who were born with a higher birthweight, or LGA women, and their adult body mass index (BMI). These researchers evaluated birthweights and BMI’s of approximately 150,000 women and their first born children (Cnattinguis, et. al., 2011, p. 1320). This study concluded that “Large-for-gestational-age (LGA) infants are at an increased risk of becoming overweight adults” (Cnattinguis, et. al., 2011, p.1320). Researchers also believe that this could cause a cycle of overweight women. If women born with a higher birthweight are giving birth to bigger babies with higher birthweights, then their children have a higher risk of being obese and later giving birth to heavier babies as well. This could cause the growing problem of obesity to just continue to get worse. The study also
showed that women “compared with mothers with appropriate birthweight for gestational age, mothers born LGA had an almost tripled and doubled risk of obesity” (Cnattinguis, et. el., 2011, p. 1322). This means that some babies that are born with a higher birthweight are at a severely increased risk of becoming obese later in life. However, it is believed that some of these things can be prevented to some extent by mothers participating in healthy eating and exercising before and during pregnancy.
High Birthweight Causing Diabetes Researchers are also discovering that babies with a higher birthweight are developing diabetes later in life.
Another group of researchers evaluated the correlation between being born with a higher birthweight and developing diabetes later in life. This group of researchers collected data from a number of other studies that were conducted between 1966 and 2005. The studies evaluated were conducted all over the world and studied people born between 1924 and 1997. The studies evaluated how many cases of diabetes were reported later in life from people that were born with a higher birthweight. The research from the other studies conducted concluded that “high birthweight was associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes to the same extent as low birthweight” (Dudenhausen, et. al., 2006, p. 852). People born with a higher birthweight are put at an increased risk of type 2 diabetes later in their lives. The researchers also concluded that “risk of type 2 diabetes increased with increasing birthweight” (Dudenhausen, et. al., 2006, p. 853). People born with a higher birthweight are put at an increased risk for diabetes and the risk continues to increase with birthweight increasing. However, diabetes can also be prevented to some extent. By eating healthy and exercising regularly, diabetes can be avoided to some extent much like obesity can be avoided with the proper diet and
exercise.
High Birthweight Causing Heart Disease Researchers are also discovering that babies with a higher birthweight are developing heart disease later in life. A third group of researchers evaluated the correlation between high birthweight and developing heart disease later in life. These researchers evaluated a set of 17 studies that observed just under 150,000 people with a high birthweight to see if they developed heart disease later in life. The conclusions found by these researchers differ from the previous correlations evaluated between high birthweights, obesity and diabetes. These researchers found that “all of the identified studies showed an inverse association between birth weight and IHD [ischemic heart disease]” (Collins, et. al., 2007, p. 1247). This means that being born with a higher birthweight does not put one at an increased risk for heart disease, which is the opposite effect as with obesity and diabetes. The researchers concluded that by “combining the results from all available studies, the overall age- and sex-adjusted relative risk of IHD was 0.84 per 1 kg higher birthweight” (Collins, et. al., 2007, p. 1247). This means that being born with a higher birthweight does not put one at a higher risk for heart disease, which is the opposite of the correlation between high birthweight, obesity, and diabetes. Having a baby with a high birthweight has long been believed to be a sign of a healthy baby. However, researchers are beginning to develop research to prove this theory wrong. Researchers are now finding out that having a higher birthweight can also cause significant health risks, such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Being born with a higher birthweight puts one at an increased risk of obesity and diabetes, but has the opposite effect on heart disease. Being born with a higher birthweight does not put one at an increased risk for heart disease. These significant health risks can often be prevented by proper diet and exercise before, during, and after pregnancy to help improve the health of offspring.