The Health Risks Of Rapid Weight Gain In First Three Months Of Life

I've seen some of my friends' babies, born at low birth weight, around 2,5 - 2,7 kg. These babies seem so fragile, with bony hands, bony legs, even can literally see all the ribs. Actually, low birth weight is not a good thing. This can mean small brains and small organs, which is not a good start to life.

Research from Netherlands suggests that regardless of birth weight, how rapidly a baby gains weight in the first three months is associated with the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes risk later on in early adulthood.

In the past, people have thought that the circumstances in the womb which led to low birth weight, were what predisposed these children to heart disease later in life.

This new study though, has found that young adults with fat tummies, low levels of good cholesterol (HDL), less sensitivity to insulin (important to combat diabetes), were significantly more likely to have had rapid weight gain during the first 3 months of their lives. Unfortunately, the records didn't show which children were breastfed or formula-fed.

The study also found that these young adults who were born with a low birth weight are quite short as adults.

So, for parents, do check your baby's weight gain against the weight gain chart to make sure there is no significant increase in weight gain. Also, try to breastfeed your baby longer, for at least 1 year if possible, as recommended by AAP.

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For reference:

Leunissen RWJ et al. Timing and Tempo of First-Year Rapid Growth in Relation to Cardiovascular and Metabolic Risk Profile in Early Adulthood. JAMA 2009;301(21):2234-2242

Diet During Pregnancy Affects Your Child's Puberty

It is becoming a common knowledge that kids nowadays tend to have early puberty. Quite a lot of them start puberty as early as 7 years old! Young girls start menstruating at this age and their body start to change to become more womanly. Gosh. I remember back in my days, puberty starts around 10-12 years old. What a huge difference.

Apparently, what a pregnant mother eats during her pregnancy, and also lactation, affects her child's puberty. Researchers from Auckland University, New Zealand, found that the offspring of rats given high-fat diets started puberty significantly earlier compared to those rats given healthy diets. The same thing applies for rats given a calorie restricted diet.

The disadvantages of having early puberty would involve:
- changes in mood disorder
- increased prevalence in depression in adolescence
- increases in sexual activity in teenagers
- early puberty and early menopause in female
- link between early first period and breast cancer in female
- increased aggressive behaviour and risk taking behaviour in male

This study has just been published in the online journal PLoS ONE. Further research is needed though to replicate the study using different strains of rats, because different strains behave differently to diets and hence its impact.

Nutritional Benefits of Green Mung Beans

Green mung beans (also known as green beans) are very beneficial towards our health. It has high level of iron to prevent anemia, phosphorus to prevent beriberi, vitamin B1 to prevent digestion problem.

Vitamin E from mung bean sprouts can help to increase fertility because of its alkalinity. Thus, it is also very effective in keeping gastric juice in check, helping in food digestion, and skin regeneration.

However, you should pay extra attention in the cooking process of green beans, as the nutritional value is easily diminished by heat and acid.

The correct way to cook green beans is to soak with water for 1-2 hours. Afterwards, cook it altogether with the water in medium heat for 30 minutes. It is ready to serve. You can add in sugar, milk, or coconut milk according to your liking.

For adults, green beans is very good to repair and maintain body system, especially during recovery phase from illness. Pregnant and breastfeeding women can benefit from its high level of iron and folate.

It is best if you could consume green beans daily. Or else you can take it once every other day, or twice a week.

Breastfeeding Method

As my pregnancy progresses, I have read few books on pregnancy, as well as parenting. And the topic of breastfeeding never fail to interest me. I plan to breastfeed my baby exclusively for first 6 months of her life. Yes, I am having a baby girl! (^-^)

Many books suggest that breastfeeding should be given 'on demand' basis, and the baby should be allowed to keep suckling until she is full.

There is another routine of breastfeeding though, which is a routine, timed feeds. Usually around 3 hours apart, counted from the start of one session to the start of the next feeding session. The feeding itself is timed around 10 minutes for each breast.

Researchers have found babies limited to feeding for ten minutes at each breast gained more weight by the time they were six to eight-weeks-old than those who were fed by the 'baby-led' method. They also say mothers who offered the timed feeds were more likely to continue breastfeeding beyond 12 weeks.

However, some experts disagree with 10 minutes feeding. This is in consideration of mothers have varying breast capacities and milk production rates. Also there are several types of babies, for example those who suckle quickly and waste no time in feeding, then there is excited ineffective, which is baby that get so excited when being presented breasts however she is ineffective in latching on and thus frustated and cry. There is also gourmet type, a baby who like to enjoy feeding slowly. And there is also baby who will fall asleep during feeding time.

My personal preference is to go with on-demand basis, and let my baby to suckle until she is satisfied and full. After all, breastmilk is made of Foremilk (see left), the watery milk that comes first during each feeding session. Then there is Hindmilk (see right), a creamy milk that comes through at the end of a feed.

The most important thing, after all is to make sure the baby get to the hindmilk so she will feel full and satisfied.