March 17, 2023 — Politicians, activists, and courts are busy fighting about when and whether to permit a woman to have an abortion. But while that tussle continues, very little energy goes into the problem of an extraordinary number of pregnant women who die in America. A new report from the CDC tells us that maternal death rates soared […]
April 13, 2022 — In his last 15 years of medical practice, Mark Landon has seen a doubling in cases of gestational diabetes. Landon is the chair of obstetrics and gynecology at the Ohio State University College of Medicine. Research published in JAMA tells us that this is not an isolated phenomenon in Ohio. In fact, between 2011 and […]
April 24, 2018 — Late last week, the American Journal of Preventive Medicine published a correlation study of sugar and diet soda consumption in mothers during pregnancy and soon after childbirth. The researchers found that mothers who consumed more sugar during pregnancy and after childbirth tended to have children with lower cognition scores. But the researchers note correctly: As […]
March 4, 2018 — Will the perfect approach to feeding infants cut their risk of obesity? Perhaps. But if someone tells you they know that perfect approach, be careful. Evidence for such suppositions doesn’t yet exist. Infant-Led Weaning? One supposition has long been that Baby-Led Introduction to Solids (BLISS) would lead to a longer duration of breastfeeding and a […]
May 11, 2016 — Diet soda is definitely not fashionable these days. Millennials regards it as “chemicals in a can” and opt instead for artisanal soda with real cane sugar. Fine. But does fashion, plus a an observational study, add up to a sound basis for recommending what to drink in pregnancy? A pair of publications in JAMA Pediatrics […]
May 8, 2016 — Every one of us is formed in a family and obesity, more often than not, is shared in families across generations. A big part of this is because roughly 70% of obesity risk is inherited. Beyond that, two recent studies add to the understanding that a mother’s health before and during pregnancy plays a role […]
June 11, 2015 — Research presented this week at the Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association adds to the growing understanding that mothers may be key to preventing obesity in children. As this knowledge becomes increasingly solid, a major re-thinking of efforts to prevent childhood obesity will be inevitable. Kristen Boyle and colleagues from the University of Colorado found […]
April 6, 2015 — Recent headlines about psychotic links to obesity might be a sign. Perhaps the word “link” — indisputably a four-letter word — is becoming offensive in health reporting. The word’s use is growing out of control in stories related to health and obesity. Ask Google for recent news stories about “obesity link” and you’ll get 8.6 million […]
November 20, 2014 — The tipping point in obesity increasingly looks like it might be traced to the metabolic health of mothers. Growing evidence for epigenetic effects of maternal health that transmit obesity from mother to child is part of this picture. A symposium at ObesityWeek 2014 provided an excellent overview of the emerging science on epigenetic mechanisms for […]
