Can Parents' Weight Hinder Toddlers' Development?

Study links -- but doesn't prove -- Moms', Dads' obesity tied to delayed social and problem-solving skills

Children who have obeseparents may show signs of developmental delays, such as poor social skills, by the time they're 3 years old, a new study suggests.

The specific developmental problems seem to differ depending on whether the mother, father or both parents are obese, according to researchers from the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

"Specifically, mothers' obesity was associated with a delay in achieving fine-motor skills, and fathers' obesity in achieving personal and social skills -- that includes skills for interacting with others," said lead researcher Edwina Yeung. She's an investigator in the institute's division of intramural population health research.

"When both parents were obese, it meant longer time to develop problem-solving skills," she added.

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