A worrying Swedish study has revealed that babies born with very low birth weight are more likely to suffer a potentially fatal stroke in early adulthood.
The researchers found that those born weighing 3.5 kilograms less than normal have a nearly one-fifth (20%) chance of experiencing this emergency.
Researchers from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden tracked more than 768,000 people born between 1973 and 1982, meaning they are now between 43 and 53 years old. They then analyzed their health data up to 2022 and discovered 2,252 cases of stroke that occurred in early adulthood during this period.
Of these cases, there were 1,624 ischemic strokes (a type caused by a blood clot that blocks blood flow to the brain) and 588 hemorrhagic strokes (caused by bleeding in or around the brain).
The researchers took into account multiple factors that could have affected the results, such as gestational age (whether the baby was born prematurely or not) and the parents' country of birth, to ensure the accuracy of the results.
The study showed that people whose birth weight was 3.5 kilograms less than average had a 21% increased risk of stroke. When the results were broken down by stroke type, the risk remained at 21% for ischemic strokes, but rose to 27% for the more serious hemorrhagic strokes.
The results also revealed gender differences, with women who were underweight at birth being 18% more likely to have a stroke than those of normal weight, while the figure for men was 23%.
Scientists have not provided a definitive explanation for this relationship, but previous research has suggested that low birth weight may be linked to higher systolic blood pressure later in life, a known risk factor for stroke.
The researchers emphasize that these results were independent of other factors such as gestational age at birth and body mass index in early adulthood, which reinforces the strong relationship between low birth weight and stroke risk.
Researchers from the University of Gothenburg say these findings highlight the importance of including birth weight among the factors assessed when estimating an adult's risk of stroke. They recommend that physicians consider this biomarker during routine checkups.
This is not the first time that low birth weight has been linked to future health problems. In a 2022 study, researchers found that babies who are small at birth are more likely to experience mental health and behavioral problems during childhood and adolescence. Experts from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland stated that every kilogram a baby weighs less than the normal average (3.5 kg) increases the likelihood of developing mental health problems.
A 2023 study found that low birth weight is directly associated with an increased risk of coronary artery disease.
It is worth noting that the results of the new study are scheduled to be presented in full at the European Obesity Conference, which will be held in Istanbul, Turkey, next May.
