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Aim: The prevalence of underweight women, who have an increased risk for small-for-gestational-age (SGA) birth, is increasing in Japan. We examined the associations of pre-pregnancy body mass index and gestational weight gain (GWG) with SGA birth among Japanese women. Material and Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort study of 1391 women who delivered full-term singleton babies. SGA was defined as below the 10th percentile of birthweight at each gestational age, baby sex, and parity. We calculated the 5th percentile of birthweight in the same way for another threshold for SGA. According to pre-pregnancy body mass index, we divided the participants into three groups: underweight (<18.5 kg/m2), normal weight (18.5-24.9 kg/m2), and overweight and obese (≥25.0 kg/m2). Results: SGA birth was observed most frequently among the underweight group (13.8%). Underweight was associated with an increased risk of SGA birth. The multiple-adjusted odds ratio for underweight was 1.96 (95% confidence interval, 1.23-3.11) compared with normal weight. Sufficient GWG reduced the incidence and the multiple-adjusted odds ratio for 1-kg increase of GWG was 0.86 (0.81-0.92). The same tendency was observed for the delivery of infants below the 5th birthweight percentile. Women with underweight and normal weight who had 9.0 kg or less of GWG had a significantly higher risk of SGA birth than women with normal weight who had 9.1-11.0 kg of GWG. Conclusions: Underweight and poor GWG were associated with a higher incidence of SGA birth. However, the incidence of SGA birth among underweight women was not increased significantly if they had sufficient GWG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes. However, the relationship between drinking patterns, such as the weekly frequency of alcohol consumption and the quantity per drinking day, and the incidence of type 2 diabetes has not been sufficiently addressed. Methods Study participants included 10 631 Japanese men aged 40e55 years without type 2 diabetes at entry. Type 2 diabetes was diagnosed if a fasting plasma glucose level was $7.0 mmol/l or if participants were taking diabetes medications. Data on alcohol consumption were obtained from questionnaires. Results During the 37 172 person-years of follow-up, we confirmed 878 cases of type 2 diabetes. Frequent alcohol consumption was associated with a low risk of type 2 diabetes. Compared to non-drinkers, the multiple-adjusted HR for those who drank 4e7 days weekly was 0.76 (95% CI, 0.63 to 0.92). To assess the association between drinking pattern and type 2 diabetes, we examined the joint association of the weekly frequency and the quantity per drinking day with type 2 diabetes. Men who consumed 0.1e2.0 or 2.1e4.0 US standard drinks per drinking day on 4e7 days weekly had a lower risk of type 2 diabetes (HR 0.74, 95% CI 0.58 to 0.95; HR 0.74, 95% CI 0.60 to 0.91, respectively) compared to non-drinkers. Conclusions More frequent alcohol consumption lowered the risk of type 2 diabetes. Light to moderate alcohol consumption per drinking day on 4e7 days weekly lowered the risk of type 2 diabetes compared to non-drinkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]