Obesity raises miscarriage risk

Here's another reason why you should cut the flab - women who have had a miscarriage could be at a greater risk of miscarrying again if they are obese, a new study has suggested.

Researchers at London's St Mary's Hospital have based their findings on an analysis of 696 women whose miscarriages were classed as "unexplained" by a specialist clinic - they found the subjects' risk of a further miscarriage was raised by 73 percent if the woman was obese.

In fact, of the 696 women whose cases were followed, more than half were of "normal" weight, 30 percent were overweight, and 15 percent were obese, meaning they had a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above.

The researchers found that the older the woman, the higher chance she had of having another miscarriage, but when the figures were adjusted to account for this, obesity emerged as another possible factor.

While there was no difference in the miscarriage rates for overweight, normal and underweight women, the risk of further miscarriage increased sharply for obese women, the BBC News portal reported.

"This is the first study to look directly at the link between BMI and recurrent miscarriage. It shows obese women who experience recurrent miscarriage are at greater risk of subsequent pregnancy loss.

"All women with recurrent miscarriage should be weighed at their first consultation. Those who are found to be obese should be counselled regarding the benefits of weight loss," lead researcher Winnie Lo said.