Postpartum Weight Retention and Its Determinants in Lebanon and Qatar: Results of the Mother and Infant Nutrition Assessment (MINA) Cohort

Abstract

Excessive Postpartum Weight Retention (PWR) is postulated to increase the risk of adverse health outcomes for mothers and offspring. Using data from the Mother and Infant Nutritional Assessment (MINA) cohort in Lebanon and Qatar, this study aimed to examine PWR and its determinants at 6 months after delivery. Pregnant women (n = 183) were recruited during their first trimester and were followed up through pregnancy and after delivery. During this period, face-to-face interviews as well as extraction from medical charts were conducted to collect data regarding the socioeconomic, anthropometric and dietary intake of participants. The mean PWR (kg) among participants was 3.1 ± 5.6 at delivery, and 3.3 ± 5.3 and 2.7 ± 4.7 at 4 and 6 months after delivery, respectively. Results of the multiple logistic regression analyses showed that a Qatari nationality and excessive GWG were associated with higher odds of a high PWR (above median) while an insufficient GWG had lower odds. After adjustment for energy, participants with a high PWR reported a greater intake of proteins, Trans fat, cholesterol, sodium and lower intakes of mono and polyunsaturated fat as compared to those with a low PWR (below median). These findings suggested priority areas for interventions to prevent excessive PWR amongst women of childbearing age in Lebanon and Qatar.

Adherence to the Mediterranean diet during pregnancy is associated with lower odds of excessive gestational weight gain and postpartum weight retention: results of the Mother-Infant Study Cohort

“…The findings of this study showed that over 80% of women had inadequate GWG, and over 50% of participants retained 5 Kg or more at 2 and 6 months postpartum. Such alarming rates are higher than those reported by the Mother and Infant Nutrition Assessment (MINA) cohort conducted in Lebanon and Qatar (64% had inadequate GWG and 36% retained more than 5 Kg at 6 months postpartum) (51) . Compared with other countries around the world, the mean PPWR at 6 months in the study was also higher than those reported from Taiwan (2.1 Kg) (52) , Malaysia (3.12 Kg) (10) , and the United States of American (3.3 Kg) (53) .…”

Development of national dietary and lifestyle guidelines for pregnant women in Lebanon

“…Inadequate GWG was in fact reported to heighten the risk for low birthweight (LBW), preterm births and impaired fetal growth, whereas excess GWG was identified as a risk factor for gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes mellitus, preeclampsia, complicated deliveries, macrosomia (Siega‐Riz et al, 2009) and adverse cardiometabolic profile in the offspring (Gaillard et al, 2015). In addition, a convincing body of evidence shows that excessive GWG in all body mass index (BMI) categories is a strong predictor of post‐partum weight retention, which itself is associated with increased risk of adverse health outcomes in subsequent pregnancies including hypertension, diabetes and stillbirth (Nasreddine et al, 2020). In Lebanon, a previous cohort study conducted by our group showed that only 33.9% of pregnant women fell within the adequate GWG range based on the IOM guidelines, whereas 21.3% and 44.9% had inadequate or excessive GWG, respectively (Abdulmalik et al, 2019).…”

“…In Lebanon, a previous cohort study conducted by our group showed that only 33.9% of pregnant women fell within the adequate GWG range based on the IOM guidelines, whereas 21.3% and 44.9% had inadequate or excessive GWG, respectively (Abdulmalik et al, 2019). Excessive GWG was also shown to be an independent predictor of post‐partum weight retention in Lebanese women (Nasreddine et al, 2020).…”

“…Excessive GWG was also shown to be an independent predictor of post-partum weight retention in Lebanese women (Nasreddine et al, 2020).…”

Maternal and Early-Life Nutrition and Health

“…A total of 13 papers are published in this Special Issue entitled "Maternal and Early-Life Nutrition and Health", and the topics include maternal nutrition behaviors [1][2][3][4] and maternal nutrition imbalances, such as maternal high-fat diets [5], maternal high-fructose diets [6], maternal obesity [7], and maternal iron deficiency [8]. Three articles investigated different factors in breastfeeding [9][10][11].…”