Maternal Weight Gain During Pregnancy Predicts Approximal Caries in Offspring

Methods: All children, at 13 years of age that resided in the County of Stockholm, Sweden, in 2000 (n=18142), were included in a populations-based cohort register study. Information on dental caries (decayed, missing and filled teeth/surfaces (DMFT/S) at age 13 years was collected from the Public Health Care Administration in Stockholm. Data on maternal Body Mass Index (BMI) at gestation week 8-12, weight gain during pregnancy and BMI at delivery were collected from the Swedish Medical Birth Register. Information on maternal socio-demographic determinants was collected from different registers at Social Health and Welfare and Statistics Sweden. Each individual was linked into the different registers by the 10-digit Personal Identification Number (PIN). Associations between the outcome “approximal decayed surfaces (DSa >0) at 13 years of age and prenatal and socio-demographic factors were analyzed by multiple logistic regression.

Results: Of the subjects, 12% (n=2169) exhibited one or more approximal decayed caries lesions at age 13 years. The mean value and standard deviation of DSa were 0.21 and 0.72, respectively. After adjustments, in the multiple logistic regression analysis, for prenatal and socio-demographic factors (age, smoking during pregnancy, civil status, country of birth, educational level, income and receipt of social welfare allowance), the maternal weight gain during pregnancy more than 44.09 pounds (OR 1.26;95% CI=1.03-1.54) was significant associated with one or more approximal decayed caries lesions in offspring at 13 years of age. Further, the relative risk of approximal caries increased in relation to the magnitude of weight gain.

Conclusions: Maternal weight gain during pregnancy is a predictor for approximal caries in 13-year-old offspring. The excess risk for approximal caries is enhanced in relation to the magnitude of maternal weight gain.