Being overweight is always a severe risk factor regardless of whether a woman is pregnant or not. And being obese during the period of pregnancy indeed leads to many health problems and disorders for both the mother and baby. The more overweight a woman is, the more they will undergo pregnancy complications. However, some ways can help them during and before pregnancy to have a healthy infant. Being overweight relies on the pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI). Pre-pregnancy signifies the BMI before a woman becomes pregnant. BMI is a measure that usually relies on height and weight: When a woman is overweight, the BMI is 25.0 to 29.9 before pregnancy. Obesity implies their body possesses an excessive body weight produced by bone, muscles, water, and fat. Nearly 75% of women in the United States undergo obesity. If a woman is obese, the BMI is 30.0 or more than that before pregnancy. Obese infer a woman holds a surfeit level of body fat. Around 4 out of 10 women between the age of 20-39 in the United States undergo the condition of obesity. To ascertain the BMI, use the BMI calculator or speak to the respective health care provider.
Pregnancy Complications Caused by Overweight
There are many complications caused by being overweight during pregnancy. Some of them are:
Blood Clotting Predicaments, Preeclampsia, and High Blood Pressure: High blood pressure occurs when the intensity of blood toward the blood vessel walls is exceptionally high. Preeclampsia is a disorder that may occur right next to the 20th week of gestation or after becoming pregnant. During that complication, a pregnant woman undergoes high blood pressure and symptoms that few of the organs, including the liver and kidneys, perhaps do not work correctly. Clotting complications occur when blood thickens partially or fully obstructs the blood flow in the blood vessels.
Gestational Diabetes: It is a type of diabetes that some women undergo during pregnancy. Diabetes occurs when the body accumulates excessive amounts of sugar known as glucose in the blood. Experiencing this complication during pregnancy can result in the risk of diabetes after childbirth. It can somewhat increase the risk of insulin resistance as well.
Cesarean Birth (also known as C-section): It is an operation that takes place when the baby has to be carried by placing an incision in the belly and uterus (womb). For obese women, complications may get increased by a C-section, for instance, a plague or wastage of too much blood.
Does Getting Obese Before Pregnancy Affect the Baby?
Indeed, getting overweight before and during pregnancy can affect the baby to undergo inevitable consequences:
Premature Delivery: It occurs before the 37 closed weeks of gestation. It is very early and can result in severe health complications for the infant.
Birth Defects: This includes congenital disabilities such as heart defects and neural tube defects (NTDs). NTDs are birth deformities that happen in the brain and backbone. A congenital disability is a complication that an infant undergoes during delivery. Congenital disabilities can also result in changing the function or shape of one or more body parts.
Macrosomia: It signifies the infant’s weight of more than 8 pounds and 13 ounces during birth. When an infant grows this much, it can result in difficulties during delivery and labor, such as damage to the infant. It further enhances the likelihood of requiring a C-section operation; heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and asthma can occur in the future as well.
