Diabetes
An overweight mother is four times more likely to develop gestational diabetes. This can lead to extremely large infants who are more likely to have birth injuries or require Caesarean delivery.

Preeclampsia
Obese mothers are twice as likely to have high blood pressure related to pregnancy. This can increase the chance of blood clots, stroke and premature birth.

Higher Chance of Caesarean
When delivering a baby naturally, my medical partners and I like to say, "It's all about the push." Women who are carrying extra weight, especially in the midsection, have less muscle tone and thus less strength with which to push their babies out. In addition, the extra fat deposits within the birth canal make it much more difficult for the baby to slip through.

Do you want to avoid a C-section? Maintaining a healthy weight is high on the list of the best ways to do it.

• For women of normal weight, the C-section rate is 11 percent.
• For overweight women, it increases to 18 percent.
• For obese women, it jumps to 43 percent.

In addition, obese women who have a Caesarean have a higher risk of blood clots, bleeding and infections after surgery.