Trends in Gestational Weight Gain in Louisiana, March 2019 to March 2022

Abstract

Importance: Average gestational weight gain (GWG) increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is not known whether this trend has continued.

Objective: To examine patterns of GWG during the COVID-19 pandemic by delivery and conception timing through the second year of the pandemic.

Design, setting, and participants: This cohort study is a retrospective review of birth certificate and delivery records from 2019 to 2022. Electronic health records were from the largest delivery hospital in Louisiana. Participants included all individuals giving birth from March 2019 to March 2022. Data analysis was performed from October 2022 to July 2023.

Exposure: Delivery date (cross-sectionally) and conception before the pandemic (March 2019 to March 2020) and during the peak pandemic (March 2020 to March 2021) and late pandemic (March 2021 to March 2022).

Main outcomes and measures: The primary outcome was GWG (total GWG and adherence to the 2009 Institute of Medicine recommendations) analyzed using linear and log-linear regression with control for covariates.

Results: Among 23 012 total deliveries (8763 Black individuals [38.1%]; 11 774 White individuals [51.2%]; mean [SD] maternal age, 28.9 [5.6] years), 3182 individuals (42.0%) exceeded the recommended weight gain in the year proceeding the pandemic, 3400 (45.4%) exceeded recommendations during the peak pandemic, and 3273 (44.0%) exceeded recommendations in the late pandemic. Compared with those who delivered before the pandemic (reference), participants had higher total GWG if they delivered peak or late pandemic (adjusted β [SE], 0.38 [0.12] kg vs 0.19 [0.12] kg; P = .007). When cohorts were defined by conception date, participants who conceived before the pandemic but delivered after the pandemic started had higher GWG compared with those whose entire pregnancy occurred before the pandemic (adjusted β [SE], 0.51 [0.16] kg). GWG was lower in the pregnancies conceived after the pandemic started and the late pandemic (adjusted β [SE], 0.29 [0.12] kg vs 0.003 [0.14] kg; P = .003) but these participants began pregnancy at a slightly higher weight. Examining mean GWG month by month suggested a small decrease for March 2020, followed by increased mean GWG for the following year. Individuals with 2 pregnancies (1289 individuals) were less likely to gain weight above the recommended guidelines compared with their prepandemic pregnancy, but this association was attenuated after adjustment.

Conclusions and relevance: In this cohort, individuals with critical time points of their pregnancy during the COVID-19 pandemic gained more weight compared with the previous year. The increased GWG leveled off as the pandemic progressed but individuals were slightly heavier beginning pregnancy.

Figure.. Gestational Weight Gain by Month of Delivery

A, Median (IQR) gestational weight gain. Diamonds denote means, lines denote medians, boxes denote IQRs, circles denote outliers (>1.5 times the IQR), and error bars denote 95% CIs. B, Mean (SE) gestational weight gain. Error bars denote SEs, and points where lines intersect error bars denote means. Orange lines mark the start of the pandemic (March 2020), and the light blue lines indicate the start of pregnancies conceived and delivered after the pandemic or exposed to the pandemic during at least part of the pregnancy.