Big, fast-growing babies face later obesity risk

Big babies and infants who gain weight very quickly early in life have a higher risk of suffering from obesity.

A review of 24 studies published online by the British Medical Journal on Friday showed that size early in life has a life-long impact.

"In the majority of studies the infants who were heaviest or those with the highest body mass index (BMI), and those who gained weight more rapidly in the first two years of life were more at risk of obesity," Dr Janis Baird, of the University of Southampton, in southern England, told Reuters.

"This was true for obesity in childhood, adolescence and adulthood."

Baird said the results of the review were consistent across the studies which were done in the United States, Britain, other European countries and a couple of less developed nations.

The research covered people born between 1927 and 1994.

Courtesy of Reuters