Moms' obesity in pregnancy is linked to lag in sons' development and IQ

A mother's obesity in pregnancy can affect her child's development years down the road, according to researchers who found lagging motor skills in preschoolers and lower IQ in middle childhood for boys whose mothers were severely overweight while pregnant. At age 7, the boys whose mothers were overweight or obese in pregnancy had scores 5 or more points lower on full-scale IQ tests. No effect was found in the girls.