..but who would want to be weighed when you're pregnant to make sure you're not getting too fat!!

[Chocolate50]

The Government are considering weighing pregnant women throughout their pregnancy.. who thinks this is a good idea?
I don't btw, I think there is enough tests and stress during pregnancy without putting in this austere measure, should they not be just trying to emphasise healthy living and diet and just leaving it up to women and families to make their own choices? how patronising..

I'm really not sure why this is controversial? There is clear medical evidence of harm to the growing baby if a mother gains too much weight. I was surprised not to be weighed after my booking in appointment.

Clearly as a population we have an overeating problem. I don't see the issue with reminding people of this.

People happy to be weighed by someone else are those who either don't have a problem with their weight or have never had an eating disorder.

I would feel judged even if there was no judgement to be honest and I accepted that a long time ago, well 9 years ago (and last pregnancy that completed).

I have since declined being weighed at other dr' appointments, as yes my health issue could be about my weight or maybe it's not so please stop making everything about my weight.

I. e "Dr I fell over and twisted my ankle, I've rested but I can't walk on it" , Dr replies "well maybe you need to lose weight" .
What has that got to do with my ankle that I've hurt playing sport for your info.

Sorry mini rant over.

I recently found my old pregancy card from 1991/2, I don't remember it but I was weighed at every appointment and I saw the midwife a lot more often than my dd did during her pregnancies.
I only had one scan though, I have always had something in the back of my mind that there are risks to the baby at each scan so I was surprised to see the trend of people paying for additional private scans but perhaps that is a mumsnet thing? Or perhaps I'm misremembering a risk - I shall google later.

But is there enough evidence regarding how much weight should be game gained during pregnancy and at which stage?

The following is a direct quote from the front page of today's Times:

"Academics have linked poor diet in pregnancy and higher maternal body mass indexes (BMI) with childhood obesity and other health problems, but research specificially on weight gain in pregnancy is rare".

So they are talking about giving official targets for weight gain in pregnancy in the absence of much evidence about the subject.

Which should make you all really question WHY they are doing it.

The article did go on to talk about one study published yesterday which found that the seven year olds children whose mothers had either gained too much or too little weight while pregnant tended to have high blood sugar and poor control of blood sugar and those mothers were larger and had higher body fat.

But this is ONE study and its questionable to say the least about the value of this study and whether its showing a correlation or a stronger connection.

Nor are we talking about the mental health impact of weigh ins.

I personally found weigh ins for DS when he was a baby so stressful and damaging for my mental health that I eventually stopped going to them. I did not respect health visitors who I found total jobs worths in their approach to weight.

The danger here is that would this deter women from attending ante-natal appointments? Would it negatively affect the relationship between women and midwives - a relationship which in many cases isn't as good as it should be already.

I seriously question why it is being proposed that this is universally roled out BEFORE a widespread study on the subject. There is a good case for doing this, for that reason - but not to base advice off the back off it.

I find this a particularly personal topic as I put on just under 4 stone whilst pregnant. I started off just shy of 8 stone. DS is small and definitely not a concern with his weight, and I have lost most of the weight.

I would seriously argue that this is the cart before the horse and no one is talking about potential unintended side effects...

It just seems like yet another way of trying to police women and putting ideology before the science.

I'm in London and am weighed at every app with midwife. I started off with a high BMI but had actually lost 2.5 stone before getting pregnant.

I'm grateful for the weigh ins because they force me to keep an eye on my weight gain, I've gained 2 stone so far, am 30 weeks, not so great but it would have been more had I not been being weighed and conscious of my weight gain

I was weighed at every appointment although my consultant was private rather than NHS. I was slightly overweight at 8 weeks and I had lost a stone by the time I was 34 weeks. The fact my weight was being monitored was the one thing that made my consultant want me to have extra scans. Which was lucky as ds’s growth had slowed right down and I had a section at 35 weeks. I had a big old bump so I hadn’t noticed that I was losing weight.

I tracker my own weight when pregnant, made a chart in excel and everything (yes, I know there are apps but I love making a good chart). I really didn't want to let my inactivity and low energy lead me into a huge weight gain that would put my health and the health of my pregnancy at risk, and then leave me with a ton of excess weight to shift afterwards. I'm really glad I did this, TBH.

There are a lot of midwives and health professionals who do not agree with these new measures because it puts extra stress on women during this stressful time. I don't think that this is coming from many professionals 'on the ground' so to speak, rather it is a top-down discussion.

I'm a bit baffled, because I was weighed during both my pregnancies anyway (over 2 decades ago.) Still seems rude and controlling though; like women are not capable of controlling their own chuffing eating!

If they are SO concerned about obesity in women like this, then offer them free membership to diet clubs (like slimming world,) and gyms and swimming pools.

I was weighed twice during both of my pregnancies (both in the last 3 years) once at booking and again around half way, maybe 28 weeks. I was told I was underweight with a bmi of 20 (at the booking appointment) by a consultant, I suggested she look up the WHO BMI cut offs, I wasn't remotely underweight just very fit.

It wasn't helpful and made me question if I was too thin, when I clearly wasn't. I'd got pregnant straight away both times so highly unlikely. I had 2 healthy pregnancies and snapped back quickly each time. My bmi is still the same to this day. Her comment just caused unnecessary worry.

I can only imagine how women must feel being pulled up for their weight gain in pregnancy. I think focus should be on eating healthily and healthy lifestyles. By all means educate women that they don't need to eat for 2 or use pregnancy as an excuse to overindulge, but don't create more stress.

I was weighed frequently through my pregnancy. I am fat though. I gained very little weight during pregnancy, about 13lb. I was eating extremely healthily and wasn’t drinking so I looked and felt great actually.

I was weighed several times over my pregnancy. Not only that but my BMI was recalculated every time at my booking appointment it was 35, by the time they weighed me nearing the end of my pregnancy it was just over 39

I lost weight everywhere except my bump when I was pregnant with DS2. Maybe they could have helped me to put weight on.

tbh I don't understand the opposition to being weighted during pregnancy (or other medical appointments)
the birth outcomes (birth injuries and stillbirths) are pretty bad in uk compared to other developed countries. lack of adequate prenatal care (inclunding regular weighing) might be a factor.

So they are talking about giving official targets for weight gain in pregnancy in the absence of much evidence about the subject.

Yes, that's what concerns me too, Red.

Interesting. It’s common practice where I live in Canada to be weighed at every appointment. It was helpful for me, because in 2nd trimester I wasn’t gaining fast enough (having lost a bit during first trimester due to extreme nausea) and the doctors wanted to keep an eye on it. It’s also helpful for midwives - I’ve had friends who are large (but not massive!) told they can’t have water births because it could put a strain on the midwives’ backs helping them back out should the need arise. There’s a strict 200lb cut-off policy. Seems fair to me, and I’d rather find out earlier in my pregnancy when thinking about birthing options, than being informed last minute in the hospital!

There are a lot of midwives and health professionals who do not agree with these new measures because it puts extra stress on women during this stressful time.

It would be interesting to know how many midwives and health professionals do agree with it though.

Wish I had been as I put on 6 stone. Admittedly some was due to ore eclampsia and 2.5 stone went after birth but that still leaves 3.5 stone. Maybe would have been a wake up call for me!

Normal in most other countries

If they are SO concerned about obesity in women like this, then offer them free membership to slimming clubs (like slimming world,) and gyms and swimming pools
What? Is it really too much to expect adults to take some responsibility for their own health and that of their unborn child? Why should the NHS pay for these things, (which aren't necessary anyway)?

Normal in most other countries

Yes but that doesn't answer the question of whether the science backs up the why it's done. Just because it's normal doesn't rule out poor attitudes to women's health being common.

I think it’s a good idea. There’s so much misinformation about how much to eat during pregnancy (“eating for two” - which you should not be).

It’s no more patronising than having your blood pressure taken. It’s just another measure of health.

We should not be so sensitive about our weight that it is verboten for a medical professional to say “actually you are under/overweight, have you considered X to try and gain/lose some of it?”

Given that the majority of the population is overweight, it doesn’t seem like people, as a whole, are able to manage their weight.

Personally I don't mind being weighed in pregnancy. I have been weighed at the start of each of my pregnancies as well as during. As someone who has been overweight at the start of each of my pregnancies I have always tracked it loosely myself to make sure I wasn't gaining.

However, I don't quite understand the benefit of weighing as a rule. I mean say you get a women who is sensitive about her weight and they get told they've put too much on. How exactly does the midwife deal with it? Do they just tell them they're overweight and need to eat more sensibly, perhaps along with the risks of not eating sensibly? How exactly is that meant to make the woman feel? Pregnancy is hard enough as it is, with such a range of emotions and I honestly feel that so many women are so sensitive about their weight, that aside from the physical benefit (if the woman then does something about it), how does this help their mental health. God I would feel totally totally shit if I was given "the discussion" and it would really effect me. As it is I'm 37+3 and have gained 14lbs so far because I've been sensible and thankfully my appetite hasn't increased. What about those women who are genuinely ravenous (and you always hear that cravings are natures way of telling you what your body is asking for) and who despite eating healthily or within the realms of normal are gaining "too much" - then what?

I don't believe that there is a woman alive who doesn't think about weight gain during pregnancy. I was talking to someone today who has gained 3 stone for far in her pregnancy and she's 31 weeks. She's all bump and the rest of her is stick thin. So what about her? Surely it would be better to inform all women of the risks of too much weight gain at the booking in appointment, rather than picking on women who it might cause emotional harm to?

Redtoothbrush ..interesting data.. I have to say that I found it really hard to deal with, and remember getting quite distressed it when midwives told me it might be that I need to have a C-section booked 'just in case' or when I told them I really thought something was wrong 'that I was over reacting' (later to find that I was right and both me and my baby was indeed at some risk but ignored).

I feel very sad overall that it has got to the stage that we are so out of touch with our bodies that some people don't recognise when they are putting on weight or when they are losing it, why is it that we aren't more in touch with what's going on with our own bodies and be able to discuss it with a health professional if we are worried? I just don't see that it is necessary to over-egg a normal occurrence like pregnancy and put in all of these processes, unless you are considered high risk to begin with

I would have appreciated a word from midwife/health professional about my weight in pregnancy. I was 9st when I fell pregnant and put on a third of my body weight by the time 41 weeks came around. I truly took eating for 2 as a given and wished someone had encouraged me to take it easy.

I could have taken responsibility for it myself but I genuinely didn't notice how much weight I'd put on until after giving birth. If someone said my weight gain wasn't in proportion, I would have definitely reigned in the eating 😂