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Maternal Overnutrition and Obesity throughout Pregnancy
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Maternal Overnutrition and Obesity throughout Pregnancy

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Women's Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2022) | Viewed by 11384

Special Issue Editor

Dr. John F. Odhiambo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Agriculture and Food Sciences, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL 32307, USA
Interests: epigenetics; fetal programming; metabolic syndrome; reproduction

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue will review the current understanding of the relationships between maternal overnutrition and obesity throughout pregnancy, particularly because excessive gestational weight gain in the mother creates an inflammatory environment for the fetus, leading to susceptibility to obesity and adverse health outcomes.

The placenta plays a central role in regulating nutrient flow from the mother to the fetus; therefore, complications resulting from maternal overnutrition and/or obesity during gestation may alter placental vascularity, metabolism, and/or nutrient transport function, leading to alterations in fetal growth, metabolism, and organ development (Ford and Odhiambo, 2017).

The prevalence of obesity in pregnant women is reported to be between 20% and 34%, impacting individuals of differing ages, races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic statuses worldwide (Ng et al, 2014). Further, it has been reported that the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents is about 13% and 24% in developing and developed countries, respectively, causing maternal obesity to be a major public health issue on the global scale.

This Special Issue will focus on research related to maternal diet and health during pregnancy and implications on offspring health and development.

Dr. John F. Odhiambo
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • maternal obesity
  • insulin resistance
  • fetal programming
  • pregnancy
  • metabolic syndrome
  • animal models
  • adolescent health
  • risk factors
  • life course implications

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 511 KiB  
Article
Effectiveness of a Brief Lifestyle Intervention in the Prenatal Care Setting to Prevent Excessive Gestational Weight Gain and Improve Maternal and Infant Health Outcomes
by Franziska Krebs, Laura Lorenz, Farah Nawabi, Adrienne Alayli and Stephanie Stock
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(10), 5863; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19105863 - 11 May 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2226
Abstract
Research on perinatal programming shows that excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) increases the risk of overweight and obesity later in a child’s life and contributes to maternal weight retention and elevated risks of obstetrical complications. This study examined the effectiveness of a brief [...] Read more.
Research on perinatal programming shows that excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) increases the risk of overweight and obesity later in a child’s life and contributes to maternal weight retention and elevated risks of obstetrical complications. This study examined the effectiveness of a brief lifestyle intervention in the prenatal care setting, compared to routine prenatal care, in preventing excessive GWG as well as adverse maternal and infant health outcomes. The GeMuKi study was designed as a cluster RCT using a hybrid effectiveness implementation design and was conducted in the prenatal care setting in Germany. A total of 1466 pregnant women were recruited. Pregnant women in intervention regions received up to six brief counseling sessions on lifestyle topics (e.g., physical activity, nutrition, drug use). Data on GWG and maternal and infant outcomes were entered into a digital data platform by the respective healthcare providers. The intervention resulted in a significant reduction in the proportion of women with excessive GWG (OR = 0.76, 95% CI (0.60 to 0.96), p = 0.024). Gestational weight gain in the intervention group was reduced by 1 kg (95% CI (−1.56 to −0.38), p < 0.001). No evidence of intervention effects on pregnancy, birth, or neonatal outcomes was found. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Maternal Overnutrition and Obesity throughout Pregnancy)
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12 pages, 331 KiB  
Article
Understanding Determinants of Pregnant Women’s Knowledge of Lifestyle-Related Risk Factors: A Cross-Sectional Study
by Farah Nawabi, Franziska Krebs, Laura Lorenz, Arim Shukri, Adrienne Alayli and Stephanie Stock
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(2), 658; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19020658 - 7 Jan 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2549
Abstract
Research indicates that a woman’s lifestyle during pregnancy influences her child’s health and development. Therefore, women need to possess sufficient knowledge regarding the elements of a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy. To date, there has been little research on the assessment of lifestyle knowledge [...] Read more.
Research indicates that a woman’s lifestyle during pregnancy influences her child’s health and development. Therefore, women need to possess sufficient knowledge regarding the elements of a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy. To date, there has been little research on the assessment of lifestyle knowledge of pregnant women in the perinatal healthcare setting. This study describes the development and application of a knowledge-based questionnaire for pregnancy to be used in a lifestyle intervention trial conducted in Germany. Within the trial, pregnant women receive counselling on lifestyle topics. These topics are based on the German initiative ‘Healthy Start—Young Family Network’ (GiL), which provides evidence-based recommendations regarding diet and lifestyle before and during pregnancy. These serve as a basis for health professionals who provide counselling on healthy lifestyle choices during the antenatal period. The questionnaire consists of eight items, each of which can be answered using ‘Yes’, ‘No’ or ‘Don’t know’. The pregnant women who completed the questionnaire at baseline around the twelfth week of gestation were recruited within the host trial from gynaecological practices in Germany. Demographic variables and the respondents’ answers to the questionnaire were analysed using descriptive statistics and regression analyses. Descriptive statistics show that more than 85% of participants answered the majority of questions (n = 5) correctly. Questions on whether tap water is safe and the normal range for gestational weight gain (GWG) were answered correctly by about 62% and 74% of the women, respectively, and the question on whether it is beneficial to obtain information on breastfeeding at an early stage was answered correctly by about 29%. The results of the regression analyses indicate that age, gestational week, education and income are positive predictors for answering the questionnaire correctly. Nullipara and migration background are predictors for answering the questions incorrectly. This study indicates that there are gaps in women’s knowledge regarding lifestyle during pregnancy. Particular focus on certain topics, such as breastfeeding and normal GWG ranges, is still required during counselling. Our analysis shows that migration background is a predictor of insufficient knowledge and incorrect answers to the questions. Women with such backgrounds require special attention during antenatal counselling in order to cater to their needs and the gaps in their knowledge. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Maternal Overnutrition and Obesity throughout Pregnancy)
16 pages, 1150 KiB  
Article
Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) Risk for Declared Family History of Diabetes, in Combination with BMI Categories
by Małgorzata Lewandowska
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(13), 6936; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18136936 - 28 Jun 2021
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 5860
Abstract
Whether categories of family history of diabetes can act as independent risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM-1, -2) has not yet been established, and neither has it been established how categories of body mass index (BMI) affect these relationships. A group of [...] Read more.
Whether categories of family history of diabetes can act as independent risk factors for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM-1, -2) has not yet been established, and neither has it been established how categories of body mass index (BMI) affect these relationships. A group of 912 women without chronic diseases, recruited in the first trimester, was investigated: 125 (13.7%) women developed GDM-1 (treated with diet); 21 (2.3%) women developed GDM-2 (treated with insulin); and a control group consisted of 766 non-diabetic women. A multiple logistic regression was used to evaluate adjusted odds ratios (AOR (95% confidence intervals)) of GDM-1 and GDM-2 for declared diabetes in the parents or grandparents (separately). These relationships were investigated in the whole cohort and subgroups of pre-pregnancy BMI. (1) Some categories of the family history were independent risk factors of GDM-1 or GDM-2. Compared to ‘absence of diabetes in the family’, women with diabetes in the father had a 3.68-fold increase in GDM-1 risk (AOR-b = 3.68 (2.23–6.07)), and women with diabetes in the mother had a 2.13-fold increase in GDM-1 risk (AOR-b = 2.13 (1.1–4.14)) and a 4.73-fold increase in GDM-2 risk (AOR-b = 4.73 (1.26–17.77)). Women with diabetes in the grandmother had a 2.34-fold increase in GDM-1 risk (AOR-b = 2.34 (1.29–4.24)). (2) The cumulative assessment of diabetes in the parents and/or grandparents was not related to the intensification of the risk of GDM, except for the increased risk of GDM-1 for diabetes in both mother and grandmothers simultaneously (AOR-b = 8.80 (1.16–66.57)), however, this group was very small. (3) The analyses in the subgroups of BMI categories showed that diabetes in the father was also an independent risk factor of GDM in the subgroup of pregnant women with normal BMI. In the subgroups of overweight and/or obesity, the risk of GDM for paternal and maternal diabetes was approximately twice as high as compared to the results of pregnant women with normal BMIs. Additionally, apart from the maternal influence of diabetes, the results suggest a significant influence of diabetes in the father on the risk of GDM, even (interestingly) in lean pregnant women. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Maternal Overnutrition and Obesity throughout Pregnancy)
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