MATERNAL AND INFANT BODY COMPOSITION AND RESTING ENERGY EXPENDITURE

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Maternal weight gain durng pregnancy has the ability to impact the incidence of morbidity in two crucial ways. Inadequate weight gains during pregnancy generally result in smaller and less healthy infants, while excessive gains predispose both the mother and the child to long-term obesity and its co-morbidities. Currently, weight gains between 10-12 kg are thought to be appropriate for most women. These recommendations are based upon the mother's pre-pregnancy nutritional and weight-for-height status. Although the parameters for optimal maternal weight gain to insure the good health of the infant are well established, little is known regarding the composition of those gains and how they impact the body composition of the infant. Therefore, the primary focus of this study will be to examine maternal body composition as a result of pregnancy (between 6-7 weeks postpartum) and at one year postpartum, as it relates to the infant's body composition and measures of growth and development (i.e. weight, length, head circumference, and skinfold measures). Resting energy expenditures (REE), which is a factor associated with fat-free mass, will also be examined in both the mothers and their infants. Body composition assessment will be achieved using dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) and REE will be assessed using the Deltrac monitoring system.