Excessive Weight Gain In Pregnancy Could Increase The Risk Of Asthma In Children

This is one more reason to watch what you eat while you"re pregnant, especially during your last trimester (last three months).

Scientists think there may be a connection between excessive weight gain and children born with asthma.

To see how a mother's weight might be linked to the development of asthma in her children, Dr. Erick Forno, an assistant professor of pediatrics at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and his colleagues reviewed 14 previously published studies that included over 100,000 mother-child pairs.
The risk of a child having asthma was 36 percent higher for mothers who were obese during pregnancy compared to normal-weight expectant mothers. The study authors suggest that, for women who do not have a history of asthma, the effect of obesity during pregnancy may be an even stronger influence on whether or not a child develops asthma.
Although there appeared to be a slight association between an overweight mom-to-be and asthma in her offspring, the association wasn't statistically significant, according to the study.
Dr. David Mendez, a neonatologist at Miami Children's Hospital, said that this study asks a question that only additional research can answer. Such research would need to take into account the mother's history of asthma and the baby's exposure to cigarette smoke, among other factors, he said.

So they are not to clear about the whole issue but this is one more reason to take weight management during pregnancy seriously. Many mums just feel they can "eat what they like" and work on dropping the weight after delivery but its important to be conscious even during pregnancy.

Keep healthy, keep fit, even during pregnancy; your physiotherapist and nutritionist should guide you .