Summary Obesity is rising in the obstetric population, yet there is an absence of services and guidance for the management of maternal obesity. This systematic review aimed to investigate relationships between obesity and impact on obstetric care. Literature was systematically searched for cohort studies of pregnant women with anthropometric measurements recorded within 16‐weeks gestation, followed up for the term of the pregnancy, with at least one obese and one comparison group. Two researchers independently data‐extracted and quality‐assessed each included study. Outcome measures were those that directly or indirectly impacted on maternity resources. Primary outcomes included instrumental delivery, caesarean delivery, duration of hospital stay, neonatal intensive care, neonatal trauma, haemorrhage, infection and 3rd/4th degree tears. Meta‐analysis shows a significant relationship between obesity and increased odds of caesarean and instrumental deliveries, haemorrhage, infection, longer duration of hospital stay and increased neonatal intensive care requirement. Maternal obesity significantly contributes to a poorer prognosis for mother and baby during delivery and in the immediate post‐partum period. National clinical guidelines for management of obese pregnant women, and public health interventions to help safeguard the health of mothers and their babies are urgently required.

Multi-component behaviour-changing interventions that incorporate diet, physical activity and behaviour change may be beneficial in achieving small, short-term reductions in BMI, BMI z score and weight in children aged 6 to 11 years. The evidence suggests a very low occurrence of adverse events. The quality of the evidence was low or very low. The heterogeneity observed across all outcomes was not explained by subgrouping. Further research is required of behaviour-changing interventions in lower income countries and in children from different ethnic groups; also on the impact of behaviour-changing interventions on health-related quality of life and comorbidities. The sustainability of reduction in BMI/BMI z score and weight is a key consideration and there is a need for longer-term follow-up and further research on the most appropriate forms of post-intervention maintenance in order to ensure intervention benefits are sustained over the longer term.

No abstract

No abstract

Objective The aim of this study was to identify trends in maternal obesity incidence over time and to identify those women most at risk and potential-associated health inequalities.Design Longitudinal database study.Setting James Cook University Hospital maternity unit, Middlesbrough, UK. Methods Trends in maternal obesity incidence over time were analysed using chi-square test for trend. Demographic predictor variables were analysed using multivariate logistic regression, adjusting for confounding factors after testing for multicollinearity. National census data were used to place the regional data into the context of the general population.Main outcome measure Trends in maternal obesity incidence. Demographic predictor variables included ethnic group, age, parity, marital status, employment and socio-economic disadvantage.Results The proportion of obese women at the start of pregnancy has increased significantly over time from 9.9 to 16.0% (P < 0.01). This is best described by a quadratic model (P < 0.01) showing that the rate is accelerating; by 2010, the rate will have increased to 22% of this population if the trend continues. There is also a significant relationship with maternal obesity and mothers' residing in areas of most deprivation (odds ratio [OR] = 2.44, 95% CI = 1.98, 3.02, P < 0.01), with increasing age (OR = 1.04, 95% CI = 1.04, 1.05, P < 0.01), and parity (OR = 1.17, 95% CI = 1.12, 1.21, P < 0.01).Conclusions The incidence of maternal obesity at the start of pregnancy is increasing and accelerating. Predictors of maternal obesity are associated with health inequalities, particularly socio-economic disadvantage.

Intermittent energy restriction may be an effective strategy for the treatment of overweight and obesity. Intermittent energy restriction was comparable to continuous energy restriction for short term weight loss in overweight and obese adults. Intermittent energy restriction was shown to be more effective than no treatment, however, this should be interpreted cautiously due to the small number of studies and future research is warranted to confirm the findings of this review.

Muticomponent interventions appear to be an effective treatment option for overweight or obese preschool children up to the age of 6 years. However, the current evidence is limited, and most trials had a high risk of bias. Most trials did not measure adverse events. We have identified four ongoing trials that we will include in future updates of this review.The role of dietary interventions is more equivocal, with one trial suggesting that dairy interventions may be effective in the longer term, but not energy-restricted diets. This trial also had a high risk of bias.

Children and adolescents with overweight and obesity are a global health concern. This is an integrative overview of six Cochrane systematic reviews, providing an up-to-date synthesis of the evidence examining interventions for the treatment of children and adolescents with overweight or obesity. The data extraction and quality assessments for each review were conducted by one author and checked by a second. The six high quality reviews provide evidence on the effectiveness of behaviour changing interventions conducted in children <6 years (7 trials), 6-11 years (70 trials), adolescents 12-17 years (44 trials) and interventions that target only parents of children aged 5-11 years (20 trials); in addition to interventions examining surgery (1 trial) and drugs (21 trials). Most of the evidence was derived from high-income countries and published in the last two decades. Collectively, the evidence suggests that multi-component behaviour changing interventions may be beneficial in achieving small reductions in body weight status in children of all ages, with low adverse event occurrence were reported. More research is required to understand which specific intervention components are most effective and in whom, and how best to maintain intervention effects. Evidence from surgical and drug interventions was too limited to make inferences about use and safety, and adverse events were a serious consideration.