What determines a baby's size?

The mother's height and weight impact the weight of the baby at birth - and the father's height and weight have an impact too. Some babies are small because it runs in the family. However, some babies may take more after the mother or the father, rather than being an average of both.
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What determines if you have a big baby?

Doctors determine their estimate of fetal size based on how big your belly measures. If it measures large for dates, they figure it's going to be a big one. Other reasons for measuring large are extra amniotic fluid or abdominal fat. Ultrasounds are better indicators of fetal size, but they're frequently way off.
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What does baby's birth weight depends on?

Your baby's birth weight will depend on how close they were born to their due date. Babies born after their due date are often larger, and those born earlier are often smaller. Your baby's birth weight is strongly influenced by the mother's health and diet before and after birth.
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Does Mom or Dad determine size of baby?

Mother's birth weight

While the father's height and weight are important, it appears that the mother's weight at birth plays a key role in the final weight of the baby. Women who are overweight are more likely to give birth to a larger than the average baby.
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Does the father influence the size of the baby?

A father's genetic code influences the weight of a baby at birth, according to a new study led by the UCL Institute of Child Health (ICH).
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How Baby's Size Changes by Week | Parents



How can I avoid having a big baby?

Can you avoid having a large baby?
  1. giving up smoking (if you currently smoke)
  2. eating a balanced, healthy diet.
  3. maintaining your weight or, if overweight, losing weight before conception if possible.
  4. if you have diabetes, trying to manage it properly.
  5. avoiding alcohol and illegal drugs.
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Is pregnancy weight gain genetic?

Background and objectives: The total amount of weight gain during pregnancy is determined by many factors such as psychological, behavioural, family, social, cultural, and environmental factors. Additionally, there is a genetic component also on body weight and propensity to gain weight.
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Does birth weight predict future size?

Yes. There's no way to predict exactly how big this enormous infant will become, but studies have shown a linear correlation between birth weight and adult size (as measured by the body mass index).
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Can what you eat affect the size of your baby?

A woman's diet in early life has more impact on her baby's birth weight than the food she eats as an adult, researchers say. The surprise finding suggests that you are what your mother ate, and that a woman's diet in her adult life has less influence on her baby's health than previously thought.
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Do Big babies run in families?

Yep, giving birth to big babies can be hereditary. In general, babies tend to be in the same weight range as their parents. In other words, if you were nine pounds, eight ounces at birth, it's incredibly unlikely that you'll give birth to a five-and-a-half-pound peanut.
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Does a long baby mean they will be tall?

If your baby tops the length charts, you might expect him to tower above his classmates one day. But a long infant won't necessarily become a tall adult—just like short babies don't always turn into small-statured people. In fact, fetus size is determined by the mother's diet and the health of the placenta.
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Does mom's weight gain affect baby size?

On average, for every kilogram (2.2 lbs) a woman gained during this earliest period, her infant's birth weight rose by 13.6 grams. For weight gained from 14-18 weeks, birth weight rose by 26.1 grams for each additional kilogram of maternal weight gain. But weight gain later in pregnancy had no effect on newborn size.
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What trimester do you gain the most weight?

However, for many women, weight gain slows or stops in the last month. Because of this, most women gain the most weight during their second trimester of pregnancy.
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Do strong kicks mean big baby?

All pregnancies and all babies are different, but it's unlikely that lots of activity means anything other than your baby is growing in size and strength. By your third trimester, your doctor will probably have you kick counting to monitor the level of your baby's activity.
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Does eating more make baby bigger?

Among the more than 513,000 women and their 1.1 million infants studied, scientists found that women who gained more than 53 pounds (24 kilograms) during their pregnancy made babies who were about 150 grams (0.3 pounds) heavier at birth than infants of women who gained only 22 pounds (10 kilograms).
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Does Big Belly mean big baby?

Does my huge pregnant belly mean I'll have a bigger baby? Not necessarily. While some babies are macrosomic and truly are just measuring larger than average, showing early or feeling like you have a huge pregnant belly doesn't mean you're destined to deliver a bigger baby.
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Can you deliver a 9 pound baby naturally?

Although most of these babies are born healthy--women around the world have vaginally delivered babies of 9, 10, and 11 pounds without problems--birth-related complications can include a prolonged labor, intolerance to labor, shoulder dystocia, and neonatal low blood sugar.
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Why do your thighs get bigger during pregnancy?

Pregnancy hormones drive this unique pattern of fat accrual. Even worse news? For the average pregnant woman, a fifth or more of the fat she gains goes to her upper thighs.
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Does being pregnant with a boy make you gain more weight?

New research shows that low gestational weight gain early in the pregnancy is correlated with having a baby of a certain sex. The less weight a woman gains during pregnancy, the less likely she is to have a boy, an analysis of CDC data found.
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How much weight do you lose after giving birth?

How much weight do you lose after giving birth? Once baby has been delivered (along with their accompanying placenta and amniotic fluid), most women lose an average of 10 to 13 pounds.
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What should I eat to have a big baby?

Poultry: Eggs and chicken are great sources of protein. They help increase fetus weight along with the benefits of low cholesterol and Omega fatty acids. Soybean: A protein substitute for vegetarians, it also contains iron, healthy fats and fibre along with other minerals.
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Does eating too much during pregnancy affect the baby?

Studies also show that binge eating raises your risk of: Losing the baby before birth (miscarriage) Long labor time, which can increase birth complications. Having a baby with birth defects.
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Is it OK to gain 40 pounds when pregnant?

Around 1 in 5 women gain more than 40 pounds during pregnancy, which is more than any woman should gain. Only about one-third of women gain the recommended amount of weight during pregnancy.
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Which parent determines height?

As a general rule of thumb, your height can be predicted based on how tall your parents are. If they are tall or short, then your own height is said to end up somewhere based on the average heights between your two parents. Genes aren't the sole predictor of a person's height.
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Can two short parents have a tall child?

And yes! A person's height can be inherited from his or her parents. Frequently, the norm is tall kids from tall parents and short kids from short parents.
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