According to British researchers, children born by cesarean section are more likely to be overweight in adulthood. Caesarean section would also increase the risk of obesity.
Cesarean sections at the origin of overweight? It is in all that suggests a team of British researchers who carried out a meta-analysis of 15 studies totaling 163,753 participants, comparing the cesarean section to the vaginal delivery. Interesting results relayed by the Medical Press Agency (APM).
26% probability of being obese
The results reported by these researchers are surprising to say the least. Indeed, according to their data, the average body mass index (BMI) was significantly higher by 0.44 kg / m2 in adults born by cesarean section. Thus, they indicate that the probability of being obese was 26% higher, and the probability of being overweight 22% higher, among participants born by cesarean section.
“There are plausible mechanisms by which cesarean section might influence subsequent body weight. The types of bacteria in the digestive tract differ in babies born by Caesarean section and vaginally, which can have important health effects, ”said Dr. Matthew Hyde, one of the study’s investigators, in a statement. published by Imperial College London.
In the same forum, he adds: “The compression of the baby during vaginal birth seems to influence the activation of certain genes, which could have long-term effects on the metabolism. “
An avenue for researchers to explore
In addition, the researchers point out that it was also suggested in the past that the cesarean section predisposed the child to health problems, in particular asthma and diabetes. An association with obesity had also already been mentioned, specifies the team.
Indeed, an American study published in 2012 in the journal Arcvhives of Disease in Childhood showed that the obesity rate at age 3 was twice as high in children born by cesarean section (15.7%) than in those born vaginally (7.5%).
“Given the increasing number of caesarean sections worldwide, it is necessary to determine whether this association is causal or reflects other concomitant influences,” conclude the authors of the British study.
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