Maternal weight gain might predict child’s weight at the 12th and 24th months of age in Damavand city, North-East Tehran

The purpose of this study was to investigate the possible association between pregnancy weight gain and
child weight at the 12th and 24th months of age in Damavand city, North-East Tehran, Iran. Materials and
Methods: In a cross-sectional study, using existing data collected by the urban health centers, records of 266
women who attended urban health centers for prenatal care and delivered between March 2004 and March
2008 with singleton term pregnancy were analyzed. Data on pre-pregnancy weight and height, total
pregnancy weight gain, mother’s age, parity, neonatal birth weight, birth order, mother’s education, working
status, breastfeeding practice and child weight at the 12th and 24th months of age were extracted. Pregnant
Women were categorized based on their pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) as underweight, normal, and
overweight and obese. Chi-square and ANOVA tests were employed to analyze data using SPSS software.
Mean (±SD) of gestational weight gain was 11.4±3.9 kg. On average, 34% of mothers had inadequate
weight gain, while 44 and 22% gained appropriate and excessive weight, respectively, based on the US
Institute of Medicine (IoM-1990) guidelines. About 11, 56, 20 and 13% of mothers were defined as
underweight, normal, overweight, and obese based on their BMI values. Initial BMI and educational level
was associated with pregnancy weight gain. There was a significant difference between mean child weight at
the 12th and 24th months of ages in all three categories of pregnancy weight gain, i.e. inadequate (<6.8 Kg),
normal (6.8–11.3 Kg), and excessive (>11.3 Kg) (p< 0.01). Gestational weight gain seemed associated with
child weight. Educating and assisting pregnant women to meet the weight gain within recommendations
range might therefore be an important strategy to prevent child malnutrition, both under- and overweight, in
early life