Previous studies confirmed that overweight or obesity in pregnancy raised the risk of cesarean delivery, the possible causes have been published in the digital journal BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, the result of research by British experts.
The study shows the theory that obese or overweight women have weaker contractions, necessary for the first phase of childbirth, at which time the cervix and vagina must dilate to give way to the baby to be born.
The data from this research were extracted from the Liverpool Women's Hospital (United Kingdom) in 2002, after analyzing 3,913 deliveries, of which in 28% of the cases the mothers were overweight and 15% obese. Samples were also taken from the uterine muscle (myometrium) of 73 women who underwent a selective caesarean section to measure their level of contraction. In addition to finding the significant irrigation of caesarean section in thick women due to lack of contractibility, they found that obese women who gave birth naturally took longer to dilate and suffered excessive blood loss when they expelled the placenta. They also found after the biopsies that the greater the body mass of the woman, the less muscular activity they had.
The researchers conclude that cholesterol may be related, since this excess is usually found in people who are overweight and can interfere with the activity of estrogen and oxytocin receptors found in myometrial cells and control uterine contraction.
Without a doubt, avoiding overweight is not only beneficial for the mother, and for the baby during pregnancy, the time of delivery can be much safer if the mother maintains an adequate weight.
