New Technology May Predict a Baby’s Obesity Risk

Article Excerpt: Researchers at the Imperial College in London have developed a new technology to predict a baby’s obesity risk from the moment of birth.  The algorithm calculates the parents’ Body Mass Index, the child’s birth weight, the number of people in the household, whether the mother smoked, and the mother’s profession.  A non-smoking mother with a BMI of 30, which is borderline obese, has a 35% probability for obesity.  However, if the mother smoked during pregnancy, that probability rises to 50%.