Babies born big more likely to become obese as children, study finds
The study looked at 10,186 children across the country, both those born at term and those born prematurely. The children born with high birthweight at term were more likely to be obese by kindergarten than their average-weight counterparts. A similar finding held true in the children born prematurely, starting in first grade. "Infants born with higher birthweight appeared to be at risk from a young age," said researcher Sarah Miller. "These children may benefit from early attention." Childhood Obesity Children born with a large birthweight (above 10 pounds at term) were 69 percent more likely than average weight children to be obese by kindergarten and continuing at least through second grade, the researchers determined. By second grade, the last grade examined, 23.1 percent of children born with high birthweight were obese. In comparison, children born at the expected weight had an obesity rate of only 14.2 percent by second grade. Of the premature infant...