Scientists at the University of Copenhagen discover a link between birthweight and the risk of health complications from obesity during childhood. The findings highlight the need for prevention and treatment approaches for children with obesity who were born with a lower birth weight. Hundreds of millions of people live with obesity, which is normally measured as a higher-than-optimal body mass index (BMI).
While an elevated BMI increases the risk of a range of cardiometabolic diseases and is responsible for around five million deaths a year according to the World Health Organization, not everyone is equally at risk. Scientists at the University of Copenhagen have now discovered that children born with a low birth weight are especially at risk of health complications if they later develop obesity. Our study shows that the link between low birth weight and cardiometabolic disease risk can be detected already in childhood – and that this is the case for both the actual birth weight and the genetic determinants of birth weight.
" Sara Stinson, postdoctoral research fellow, and first author of the study "It also supports the theory that individuals who were born low birth weight, or who are genetically predisposed to low birth weight, may be more vulnerable to health hazards – such as excess visceral fat – throughout the course of life." Scientists have already discovered that people born with a high birth weight are more at risk of developing a higher-than-optimal BMI later.