United States: Hot weather can be more than just annoying; it can actually affect how babies grow! New research shows that when it gets really hot, it can impact an unborn baby’s development.
As reported by the HealthDay, the study found that if a mom experiences more heat during her first three months of pregnancy, her baby is more likely to be born smaller than usual. So, staying cool is important for both moms and their babies!
In addition, the study revealed that failure to limit heat stress for growing infants would lead to stunted growth as a result of their frequent exposure to high temperatures.
In one year old infants who are usually exposed to environments with temperature of 86-degree F, the study showed that they were lighter for their height and age than those who are exposed to average 77-degree F temperature, the researchers added.
“These findings extend prior research demonstrating that first trimester pregnancy is a susceptible period to heat exposure and we must now evaluate which variables may underlie the association,” said lead author Dr. Ana Bonell from the London School of the Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Pregnant women, for example, may see their ability to regulate their body temperature affected as a result of heat stress, and this could well affect their appetite and food, Bonell added in a school news release termed Heat stress.
In the study, data collected from 668 infants and their mother’s resident in the West African nation of Gambia were used and the study sample span a period of 60 months beginning from January 2010 to February 2015.
During the course of the study, the mothers and infants got an average exposure of nearly 86 degrees, according to researchers. The highest temperature registered was 114 F while the lowest registered temperature is 84 F.
The new study is reported in the on Oct. 8, in The Lancet Planetary Health journal.
“To be able to come up with those measures, it’s important that we know which populations will be the most exposed to heat stress and where we think this growth faltering might actually be occurring,” Bonell said. ‘That’s why such findings must catalyze action on child health improvement as well as global rates of child wasting remain unacceptably high and planetary warming continues’.