Study shows obesity worsens pregnancy outcomes in maternal COVID-19

Posted on by Jesse Santiano, M.D.

A study from Sri Lanka on 2,493 women with COVID-19 identified that pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity increases the risk of preterm delivery ( less than 37 weeks).

Data was collected from March 1, 2020, to October 31, 2021, by the Family Health Bureau, Ministry of Health, Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Pregnancy outcomes of mothers with COVID-19 infection

  • Pre-pregnancy overweight and obesity increased the risk of preterm delivery compared to pregnant women with normal BMI by 46.7%.
  • A premature birth rate of 11.9%
  • Lower Segment Cesarean Section (LSCS) rate of 54.5%
  • Low birth weight rate of 16.5%
  • Newborns requiring intensive care – 8.3%
  • The neonatal mortality rate (death within 28 days after birth) was 9 per 1000 live births.

The study Neonatal and Maternal Outcome of COVID-19 positive women in Sri Lanka: Secondary Analysis using National COVID-19 Positive Pregnant Women Surveillance is not yet peer-reviewed and is available at medRxiv.

By Dennis Jarvis from Halifax, Canada – Macedonia-02845, CC BY-SA 2.0, 

The conclusions of this study indeed apply only to Sri Lanka, but it highlights that being overweight or obese results in worse COVID-19 outcomes. The SARS-CoV-2 has been detected in fatty tissues, and excess fat deposits result in a higher viral load and elicit an immune response.[3]

In another study, obesity also leads to lower production of inflammatory mediators in lung tissue to fight infection.[2]

Surprisingly, we found that Obese subjects had attenuated lung immune/inflammatory responses in SARS-CoV-2 infection, with  decreased expression of interferon-alpha (IFN)α, interferon-gamma (IFNγ) and tumour necrosis factor alpha  (TNF) response gene signatures in almost all lung epithelial and immune cell subsets, and lower expression of IFNG and TNF in specific lung immune cells.

Increased fat stores decrease the immune response in the lungs where it is needed to control the SARS-CoV-2 and allow the viruses to multiply in the fat cells, increasing the chance of prolonged and severe COVID-19.

Women planning to get pregnant should decrease their weight to lower the risk not only of COVID-19 complications but also pregnancy-induced diabetes and hypertension.

Obesity in women also leads to Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome PCOS, leading to hormonal imbalance and infertility. Diseases of the Female Urinary and Reproductive System Associated with Metabolic Syndrome.

Intermittent fasting can reverse infertility associated PCOS

Knowledge about Covid-19 is rapidly evolving. Stay current by subscribing. Feel free to share and like.

If you find value in the articles, please consider donating to show your support.

Related:

  1. Yogurt and Intermittent Fasting Reduced Body Toxins
  2. Intermittent Fasting Grows New Liver Cells Faster
  3. Intermittent Fasting while on Diabetes Medications
  4. The Fasting Experience of 1422 Subjects at the Buchinger Wilhelmi Clinic
  5. The Effects of Three-Week Fasting in the Extremely Obese
  6. The Effects of Intermittent Fasting on Asthma
  7. How to Do Intermittent Fasting
  8. The Kaizen Way of Fasting
  9. Early Time-Restricted Feeding is Intermittent Fasting In Sync with the Circadian Rhythm

Reference:

  1. Kumarasinghe, M et al. Neonatal and Maternal Outcome of COVID-19 positive women in Sri Lanka: Secondary Analysis using National COVID-19 Positive Pregnant Women Surveillance. medRxiv 2022.02.10.22270732;  doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.02.10.22270732
  2. Guo SA et al., Obesity-associated with attenuated tissue immune cell responses in COVID-19.
    bioRxiv 2022.01.14.475727; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.01.14.475727
  3. Colón et al. SARS-CoV-2 infects human adipose tissue and elicits an inflammatory response consistent with severe COVID-19. bioRxiv 2021.10.24.465626; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.10.24.465626