No CrossRef data available.
Article contents
Association between women’s weight gain during their infancy and being overweight or underweight in adulthood: a retrospective cohort study
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 September 2025
Abstract
This study aimed to explore the associations between weight gain during infancy with pre-pregnant body mass index (BMI) later in life, focusing on risks of being overweight or underweight. A retrospective cohort study was conducted using data from women (n = 1082) who visited the National Center for Child Health and Development between 2017 and 2021. The participants provided their Maternal and Child Health Handbook, which included records of their own birthweight and weight gain from birth to 1, 3, and 6 months. The infant weight gain was divided into quintiles. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the association of weight gain during infancy with pre-pregnant underweight (BMI < 18.5) and overweight (BMI ≥ 25) later in life, adjusting for potential confounders. The current study found that the largest weight gain category (5230–7700 g) by 6 months was associated with a decreased risk of “pre-pregnant underweight,” compared to the third weight gain category (4355–4730 g) by 6 months (OR, 0.40; 95% CI, 0.22–0.73). In contrast, no significant association was observed between weight gain category in infancy and being overweight in adulthood. In conclusion, greater weight gain during the first 6 months of life was associated with a reduced risk of “adult underweight,” without increasing the risk of being overweight.
Information
- Type
- Original Article
- Information
- Copyright
- © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press in association with The International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD)
References
ACOG Practice Bulletin. Obesity in pregnancy. Obst Gynecol. 2021; Number 230-137, e128–e144.Google Scholar
Ehrenberg, HM, Dierker, L, Milluzzi, C, Mercer, BM. Low maternal weight, failure to thrive in pregnancy, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Am J Obst Gynecol. 2003; 189, 1726–1730.10.1016/S0002-9378(03)00860-3CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Liu, P, Xu, L, Wang, Y, et al. Association between perinatal outcomes and maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index. Obes Rev. 2016; 17, 1091–1102.10.1111/obr.12455CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sebire, NJ, Jolly, M, Harris, J, Regan, L, Robinson, S. Is maternal underweight really a risk factor for adverse pregnancy outcome? A population-based study in London. BJOG. 2001; 108, 61–66.Google Scholar
Liu, J, Boghossian, NS, Frongillo, EA, Cai, B, Hazlett, LJ, Liu, J. Associations of maternal gestational weight gain with the risk of offspring obesity and body mass index Z scores beyond the mean. Ann Epidemiol. 2019; 32, 64–71. e2.10.1016/j.annepidem.2019.01.007CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nguyen, PH, Young, MF, Khuong, LQ, et al. Maternal preconception body size and early childhood growth during prenatal and postnatal periods are positively associated with child-attained body size at age 6-7 years: results from a follow-up of the PRECONCEPT trial. J Nutr. 2021; 151, 1302–1310.10.1093/jn/nxab004CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Heidkamp, RA, Piwoz, E, Gillespie, S, et al. Mobilising evidence, data, and resources to achieve global maternal and child undernutrition targets and the sustainable development goals: an agenda for action. Lancet. 2021; 397, 1400–1418.10.1016/S0140-6736(21)00568-7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Keats, EC, Das, JK, Salam, RA, et al. Effective interventions to address maternal and child malnutrition: an update of the evidence. Lancet Child Adolesc Health. 2021; 5, 367–384.10.1016/S2352-4642(20)30274-1CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Vesel, L, Bellad, RM, Manji, K, et al. Feeding practices and growth patterns of moderately low birthweight infants in resource-limited settings: results from a multisite, longitudinal observational study. BMJ open. 2023; 13, e067316.10.1136/bmjopen-2022-067316CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Beluska-Turkan, K, Korczak, R, Hartell, B, et al. Nutritional gaps and supplementation in the First 1000 Days. Nutrients. 2019; 11, 2901.10.3390/nu11122891CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sata, M, Yamagishi, K, Sairenchi, T, et al. Breastfeeding in infancy in relation to subsequent physical size: a 20-year follow-up of the Ibaraki children’s cohort study (IBACHIL). J Epidemiol. 2023; 33, 63–67.10.2188/jea.JE20200562CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vaz, JS, Maia, MFS, Neves, PAR, Santos, TM, Vidaletti, LP, Victora, C. Monitoring breastfeeding indicators in high-income countries: levels, trends and challenges. Matern Child Nutr. 2021; 17, e13137.10.1111/mcn.13137CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Victora, CG, Bahl, R, Barros, AJ, et al. Breastfeeding in the 21st century: epidemiology, mechanisms, and lifelong effect. Lancet. 2016; 387, 475–490.10.1016/S0140-6736(15)01024-7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Akaboshi, I, Haraguchi, Y, Mizumoto, Y, Kitano, A, Kan, H. Taller stature after postnatal rapid weight gain in early infancy predicts overweight status at age 3. Acta Paediatr. Oct 2008; 97, 1460–1464.10.1111/j.1651-2227.2008.00932.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fujita, Y, Kouda, K, Nakamura, H, Iki, M. Association of rapid weight gain during early childhood with cardiovascular risk factors in Japanese adolescents. J Epidemiol. 2013; 23, 103–108.10.2188/jea.JE20120107CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nanri, H, Shirasawa, T, Ochiai, H, Ohtsu, T, Hoshino, H, Kokaze, A. Rapid weight gain during early childhood is associated with overweight in preadolescence: a longitudinal study in Japan. Child Care Health Dev. 2016; 42, 261–266.10.1111/cch.12316CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Demerath, EW, Reed, D, Choh, AC, et al. Rapid postnatal weight gain and visceral adiposity in adulthood: the fels longitudinal study. Obesity. 2009; 17, 2060–2066.10.1038/oby.2009.105CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Odegaard, AO, Choh, AC, Nahhas, RW, Towne, B, Czerwinski, SA, Demerath, EW. Systematic examination of infant size and growth metrics as risk factors for overweight in young adulthood. PloS one. 2013; 8, e66994.10.1371/journal.pone.0066994CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Goodell, LS, Wakefield, DB, Ferris, AM. Rapid weight gain during the first year of life predicts obesity in 2-3 year olds from a low-income, minority population. J Community Health. Oct 2009; 34, 370–375.10.1007/s10900-009-9164-6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hui, LL, Schooling, CM, Leung, SS, et al. Birth weight, infant growth, and childhood body mass index: Hong Kong’s children of 1997 birth cohort. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2008; 162, 212–218.10.1001/archpediatrics.2007.62CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hosoya, S, Ogawa, K, Morisaki, N, Okamoto, A, Arata, N, Sago, H. Gestational glycosuria, proteinuria, and borderline hypertension in pregnancy are predictors for the later onset of maternal chronic disease. J Obstet Gynecol Res. 2023; 49, 641–648.10.1111/jog.15497CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Maternal and Child Health Division. Children and families agency, government of Japan. In Maternal and Child Health Handbook (English version), 2024; Available from: https://mchbook.cfa.go.jp/pdf/R5_EN_240301.pdf, (Accessed June 15, 2025).Google Scholar
Klein, P, Polidori, D, Twito, O, Jaffe, A. Impaired decline in renal threshold for glucose during pregnancy - a possible novel mechanism for gestational diabetes mellitus. Diabetes Metab Res Rev. 2014; 30, 140–145.10.1002/dmrr.2474CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nanri, H, Shirasawa, T, Ochiai, H, Nomoto, S, Hoshino, H, Kokaze, A. Rapid weight gain during infancy and early childhood is related to higher anthropometric measurements in preadolescence. Child Care Health Dev. 2017; 43, 435–440.10.1111/cch.12455CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zheng, M, Hesketh, KD, Vuillermin, P, et al. Understanding the pathways between prenatal and postnatal factors and overweight outcomes in early childhood: a pooled analysis of seven cohorts. Int J Obes. 2023; 47, 574–582.10.1038/s41366-023-01301-9CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Robinson, N, Brown, H, Antoun, E, et al. Childhood DNA methylation as a marker of early life rapid weight gain and subsequent overweight. Clin Epigenetics. 2021; 13, 8.10.1186/s13148-020-00952-zCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Victora, CG, Adair, L, Fall, C, et al. Maternal and child undernutrition: consequences for adult health and human capital. Lancet. 2008; 371, 340–357.10.1016/S0140-6736(07)61692-4CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Selling, KE, Carstensen, J, Finnström, O, Sydsjö, G. Intergenerational effects of preterm birth and reduced intrauterine growth: a population-based study of Swedish mother-offspring pairs. BJOG. 2006; 113, 430–440.10.1111/j.1471-0528.2006.00872.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tam, CH, Wang, Y, Luan, J, et al. Non-linear relationship between birthweight and cardiometabolic risk factors in chinese adolescents and adults. Diabet Med. 2015; 32, 220–225.10.1111/dme.12630CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Klebanoff, MA, Schulsinger, C, Mednick, BR, Secher, NJ. Preterm and small-for-gestational-age birth across generations. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1997; 176, 521–526.10.1016/S0002-9378(97)70540-4CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Itabashi, KFM, Kusuda, S, Tamura M.Hayashi, T, Takahashi, T, Goishi, K. Introduction of new neonatal standard anthropometric measurements. Nihonshounikagakkaizasshi. (in Japanese). 2010; 114, 1271–1293.Google Scholar
Kudo et al. supplementary material 1
Kudo et al. supplementary material
File
24.7 KB
Kudo et al. supplementary material 2
Kudo et al. supplementary material
File
20.2 KB
Kudo et al. supplementary material 3
Kudo et al. supplementary material
File
21.1 KB