Introduction
Descriptive statistics describe the basic features of a data set. They often give an overview of a data set or highlight interesting features. Descriptive statistics is valuable for researchers as it can help summarize data and compare different data sets. They can also be used to spot trends and patterns in data. This essay identifies and analyzes the statistics employed in the articles concerning the question, “What maternal factors contribute to overweight and obesity in children?”
Clinical Question
The clinical question explored in this essay is “What maternal factors contribute to overweight and obesity in children?” The environment that a mother exposes a child to during pregnancy contributes to the child’s health status once it is born. Maternal factors contributing to overweight and obesity in children include a poor diet, smoking, lack of exercise, and genetic factors. A poor diet can lead to children being overweight or obese if the mother is not providing healthy food options or is not teaching the child proper nutrition. Insufficient physical activity may cause children to become overweight or obese, especially if the mother is inactive and does not motivate the child to participate in exercise.
Genetic factors can contribute to overweight and obesity in children if the mother is overweight or obese and passes these genes on to the child. The contributors to weight gain in toddlers can be certified through statistical evidence. Also, the degree to which each maternal factor leads to obesity in young ones can be determined. Such information is helpful in healthcare as it can provide evidence-based interventions to mothers to promote preventive care and reduce the chances of obesity among children.
Statistical Results
Rayfield & Plugge’s Study
Maternal smoking is the target factor in this article presumed to contribute to childhood obesity and overweight. The study results showed that of all the reviewed mothers, there was a wide range of 5.5% to 38.7% for them to smoke during pregnancy. Thus, of the 236,687 children and their mothers reviewed, 6.3% to 32.1% were overweight, and their mothers were among the smoking parents. The obesity rate was 2.6% to 17% of the children and was also among the population of children with smoking mothers (Rayfield & Plugge, 2016). The rates show that smoking contributes highly to obesity in toddlers.
Another statistical measure employed in the study is the pooled adjusted ORs, whose results depicted a high correlation between smoking and weight gain in toddlers. For instance, for childhood overweight status among smoking mothers, the pooled adjusted ORs were (OR 1.37, 95% CI 1.28 to 1.46, I2 45%). This means that the probability of obesity is 1.37 times higher in individuals born to smoking mothers than in those who are not.
The 95% confidence interval (CI) for this odds ratio (OR) is 1.28 to 1.46, which means we are 95% confident that the actual OR lies between 1.28 and 1.46. The I2 statistic measures the percentage of variability in the ORs due to heterogeneity (differences) among the studies rather than chance. In this case, 45% of the variability is due to heterogeneity. The pooled adjusted ORs for obesity were (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.40 to 1.73, I2 24%) (Rayfield & Plugge, 2016). Thus, the contribution of smoking in pregnancy to childhood obesity cannot be denied.
Wu et al.’s Study
A total of 162,129 mothers with their toddlers were included in the study. The main factors assessed for the parents were their lifestyle characteristics, BMI before pregnancy, and pregnancy weight gain. Their children were also evaluated for overweight and obesity from birth through late childhood (Wu et al., 2020). There was a 1.66, 1.91, and 2.28 times greater chance of maternally overweight mothers having obese or overweight children in their early, mid, and late infancy, respectively, compared to non-overweight mothers.
Mothers who had gained excessive weight had a higher probability (1.39 times greater in early childhood) of having obese children than those who did not. The likelihood of having obese children for mothers who reported maternal obesity was 1.72 times more than for those who did not (Wu et al., 2020). The highest risk of having overweight or obese children who follow their overweight parents is primarily seen in the late childhood stages of development.
Therefore, there is a positive correlation between maternal obesity and overweight status and the possibility of having obese or overweight children. Hence, preventive care for weight gain during pregnancy can lower the chances of obesity in children. The study adequately proves that maternal weight status can impact their children’s health in terms of their weight. This study helps provide insights to address the critical issues of increased obesity in children.
Conclusion
Statistical analysis is an excellent evidence-based technique that proves or disproves the hypotheses of various studies. Statistical reports are part of quantitative studies, which give a better picture of the validity of claims or assumptions. In the above studies, the authors wanted to prove the existence of a positive relationship between maternal factors and their children’s obesity or overweight status. Furthermore, the statistical results showed the extent to which the various reviewed maternal factors could result in obesity in infants.
References
Rayfield, S., & Plugge, E. (2016). Systematic Review and meta-analysis of the association between maternal smoking in pregnancy and childhood overweight and obesity. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 71(2), 162–173.
Wu, R., Gu, R., Xing, D., Zhang, S., Chen, L., & Wang, T. (2020). Maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index, gestational weight gain, and risk of childhood asthma/wheeze: A systematic review and meta-analysis of Cohort studies.
