Research

Hormonal

Rapid catch-up weight gain during infancy (birth to 2 years) in small-for-gestational-age (SGA) children drives the subsequent development of central adiposity and insulin resistance between ages 2 and 4, despite normal overall weight and BMI trajectories.

For parents of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants, the rate of weight gain in the first two years of life is a critical predictor of future metabolic health. Rapid catch-up growth during this infancy period is strongly associated with increased abdominal fat and insulin resistance by age 4, even if the child's overall weight appears normal. Caregivers should monitor growth velocity and body composition during infancy, as this is the primary window for preventing adverse metabolic outcomes, rather than focusing solely on weight gain after age 2.

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In SGA children, total and abdominal fat mass at 4 yr was more closely related to rate of weight gain between 0 and 2 yr (P < 0.002– 0.0003) than between 2 and 4 yr (P < 0.04 – 0.1).
Lourdes Ibáñez et al. · The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism · 2006

Why this rating

Longitudinal cohort study with statistical significance, but limited by small sample size (n=51) and observational design.

Source

Early Development of Adiposity and Insulin Resistance after Catch-Up Weight Gain in Small-for-Gestational-Age Children

Lourdes Ibáñez et al. · The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism · 2006

DOI 10.1210/jc.2005-2778

cohort · n=51Cited 548×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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