Weighty Matters

Obese Women Gain Too Much Weight During Pregnancy, Study Says

Oh, Lord. Keeping up with the ACOG theme of women being too old and fat to deliver normally, this headline really chapped my hide. Yes, obesity has health risks, and ideally we'd all begin pregnancy in perfect physical form, but really, Dr. Artal, is pregnancy really one of the leading contributors to the obesity epidemic? Women should try to limit their weight gain during pregnancy because they're too lazy to lose it postpartum?

The article harps on the fact that the current guidelines for weight gain in pregnancy state that overweight women ought to gain at least 15 pounds. Considering that that would barely cover baby, amniotic fluid, and breast growth, that hardly seems excessive. I find this especially ironic considering that the obstetrical community, with few exceptions, rarely offers anything in the way of substantive nutritional guidelines to women in its care...

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