Pregnancy and weight retention

One in five pregnant women in the UK currently is obese and they retain 1 to 3.5kg following each pregnancy. Excessive post-partum weight retention can have long-term implications, particularly if the pregnancy was complicated by gestational diabetes mellitus. The aim of this pilot study, being carried out by Dr Nithya Sukumar, Warwick Medical School and funded by the Medical and Life Sciences Research Fund is to study changes in resting energy expenditure (measured by indirect calorimetry) during pregnancy and its influence on post-partum weight retention in women with gestational diabetes mellitus.