Cesarean on Maternal Request and Childhood Obesity Rates
Pregnancy News
Obie Editorial Team
Previous studies have concluded a correlation between voluntary C-sections and childhood obesity exists, but these studies were small-scale. Researchers attempted to reinforce the connection with a larger birth cohort study including 181,380 children.
Children born via C-section, both voluntary and medically-necessary, were more likely to suffer childhood obesity than children born vaginally, but the increase was modest. After adjusting for maternal and other complimentary risk factors, obesity odds between C-section and vaginal births was 1.18 to 1.
Source: Li H, Ye R, Pei L, Ren A, Zheng X, Liu J. Caesarean delivery, caesarean delivery on maternal request and childhood overweight: a Chinese birth cohort study of 181 380 children. Pediatr Obes. 2013 Mar 19. doi: 10.1111/j.2047-6310.2013.00151.x.