Being obese no big deal, say pregnant women

Being overweight increases potential risks to developing babies

Obesity could now be "so common it is perceived as normal", an Australian researcher says after a survey of pregnant women showed many were oblivious to being overweight.

The Brisbane study involved 412 women and it found 30 per cent were either overweight or obese before they fell pregnant.

Associate Professor Leonie Callaway said when the women were asked what they thought about their weight, 36 per cent responded it was normal. Only 16 per cent who were rated in the top-most category because of their high Body Mass Index (BMI) score considered themselves to be obese.

"This may result in women having an inaccurate picture of the potential risk their weight adds to a future pregnancy," said Dr Callaway, who works at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospitals and the University of Queensland's school of medicine. "It is also possible that obesity is now so common it is perceived as normal."

More than half of the overweight women said they had a health check-up before falling pregnant. Just 17 per cent could remember their doctor telling them they should lose weight.

Dr Callaway said the research highlighted the importance of doctors calculating the BMI of patients and advising them of the increased risk that extra weight would pose to a developing baby.

The research is published in the Medical Journal of Australia, due out today, where an accompanying editorial lists the risks of being overweight.

Professor Marc Keirse, who is an obstetrician and gynaecologist at Flinders University in Adelaide, said it could make conception more difficult.

He said it could lead to gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia and delivery problems.

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