Nursing and Eating Right Leads to Healthier Babies
Obesity is a growing problem among toddlers, children and adolescents in the United States. Gaining weight and fat mass rapidly during the first six months of life is one risk factor that can lead to obesity in children.
A University of Minnesota School of Public Health study, recently published in the journal Nutrients, examined the role a mother’s diet plays in infant growth and body composition. Professor Ellen Demerath and a team of researchers led by postdoctoral fellow Muna Tahir examined diet quality because it is a potentially modifiable factor in obesity prevention.
“A baby who is shooting up through the percentiles in weight-for-length during the first six months is two to three times more likely to become obese as early as adolescence,” says Demerath.