Fatherhood can make men pile on pounds

NEW mothers know how difficult it can be to keep the pounds off.

But it seems dads should keep an eye on their waistlines too – as research suggests fatherhood makes you put on weight.

Scientists tracked 10,000 American men for two decades, from their early teens to their early 30s, and found that those who became fathers saw an average rise in their body mass index (BMI) of 2.6 per cent after their first child was born.

For a six-foot-tall man that was equivalent to putting on 4.4lb. Meanwhile men who had no children actually lost weight – an average of 1.4lb.

The team from Northwestern University in Chicago did not look at the reasons behind the link between weight and parenthood. But study leader Dr Craig Garfield, a professor in medical social sciences, suggested a change in lifestyle is a likely cause.

He said: ‘You have new responsibilities when you have your kids and may not have time to take care of yourself the way you once did in terms of exercise.’

Eating habits may also change as families start buying children’s treats, he added. Above all, fathers become prone to finishing off their children’s uneaten meals.

The study, published in the American Journal of Men’s Health, found that even fathers who did not live with their children put on weight, although not as much, gaining on average 2 per cent of their BMI.

Dr Garfield said this weight gain puts fathers at a higher risk of health problems such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer. He urged doctors to warn new dads about the dangers and offer more advice.