Babies who arrive via c-section arrive programmed to be fat

The way something starts, invariably sets the tone for how things end. Logic suggests a smooth easy ride into this world – is going to be better for everyone involved.

Which is precisely why, more and more moms-to-be, opt to have their baby emerge into the world, via a caesarean section. A baby that is born via c-section, is gently lifted out of the womb, albeit a fraction earlier that he/she might have planned, by a pair of strong hands. The whole experience is virtually stress free for baby AND a whole lot less painful, for the new Mom.

And the added bonus for Mom, as well as her attending physician – the whole thing can planned and pencilled into very busy schedules.

But avoiding the hard start, seems to be increasingly a case of NO PAIN, MORE GAIN.

The gain comes in extra rolls of fat……… later.

C-section babies destined to be fat ?

A team of researchers from Massachusetts kept tabs on the body mass of 1255 babies, born in the Massachusetts area, between 1999 and 2002.

The children joined the study when their Mom’s were just on 5 months into the pregnancy. How heavy they were and how they arrived, was carefully recorded for each child, along with demographic details about their Mom’s.

The team followed up the initial round of weighing and measuring, with weight measurements at 6 months and again at 3 years. In addition to their weight, the amount of fat was also estimated at the age of 3, using a skinfold measurement.

The team found, just under 16% of children, delivered via c-section were obese by the age of 3, compared with 7.5% of those born vaginally.

Translated, being born the easy way, doubles your risk of being fat.

The hard start

Mother Nature has blessed humans with a seriously big brain, which is the human superpower. 408

The trouble with this arrangement, is the big brain, is tucked away in a giant head, and the giant head, along with a moderately sized body, has to get into the world via a horrendously narrow tube – a tough ask.

The move down the birth canal, ends up being a serious of head butts, each butt is designed to systematically stretch the tube, to near “breaking” point.

It requires lots of pushing, shoving and SPUTTERING.

Sputtering down the vagina is dirty business

Since the task is performed head first – a whole heap of fluid gets swallowed, en route to the outside.

The fluid is considered to be “DIRTY”, it is jam packed full of the bugs which reside in the vagina.

These are the first germs baby encounters and they serve as this world’s, welcoming committee.

And, they’re usually the GOOD GUYS.

Good guys help keep baby skinny

The big difference between a baby born via c-section and a baby born vaginally, is the composition of the welcoming committee.

Study after study has shown, baby’s who start out the way Mother Nature intended i.e. the hard way – have the PAIN, but GAIN lots of bacteria belonging to the Bacteroides family.

Babies who get a softer start, avoid the PAIN, but GAIN a lot more bacteria which belong to the Firmicutes family.

And, in the long run, this really matters.

Fat people consistently have an excess of Firmicutes and a shortage of Bacteroides.

Something to consider when you choose

For some Mom’s, having a c-section really isn’t a choice – it is a necessity.

But, for many Mom’s it is a choice.

When you’re making the decision – consider who will be part of your baby’s welcoming committee. The welcoming committee primes the immune system and sets the metabolic switch, for a lifetime.

Delivery by caesarean section and risk of obesity in preschool age children: a prospective cohort study. Archives of Disease in Childhood (2012) 97:610-616. Susanna Y Huh, Sheryl L Rifas-Shiman, Chloe A Zera, Janet W Rich Edwards, Emily Oken, Scott T Weiss, Matthew W Gillman.

 

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Further reading

Your baby’s first “friends” shape their destiny	Early to bed is the secret to raising a skinny child	Is obesity a consequence of living in a chemical world ?

The 7 Big Spoons™…. are master switches that turn health on.

Balance Eicosanoids	Rein in insulin	Dial down stress	Sleep !	Increase Vit D	Culivate microflora	Think champion

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