C-sections tied to child obesity

Among cesarean born babies 83 percent more likely to be overweight or obese than their vaginally-born peers once other related factors - such as their mother's weight and how long they were breastfed - were taken into account.
The findings are in line with a recent review of nine earlier studies that also found a link between C-sections and childhood obesity (see Reuters Health story of December 12, 2012 here: http://reut.rs/TV6GwC).
With C-sections, "there may be long-term consequences to children that we don't know about," said Dr. Jan Blustein, who led the new study at the New York University School of Medicine.
The rate of C-sections in the U.S. has been rising, leading to concerns about possible complications for mothers and babies. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, C-sections accounted for almost 1 in 3 births in 2010 - up from 1 in 5 in 1996.
For women, the procedure increases the chance of bowel or bladder injuries as well as future pregnancy complications.
Blustein said the size of the obesity risk for kids is "not great," and shouldn't come into play for women who need a C-section for medical reasons.
But, "a woman who's considering C-section electively should probably know about those risks," she told Reuters Health.

Research Conclusion:

Caesarean delivery is associated with increased body mass in childhood and adolescence. Research is needed to further characterize the association in children of normal weight women. Additional work is also needed to understand the mechanism underlying the association, which may involve relatively enduring changes in the intestinal microbiome.

Tribute to Jean Henry Dunant, founder of the Red Cross.

Jean Henri Dunant was born in Geneva on 8 May 1828.

On 24 June 1859, Dunant arrived at Solferino where he witnessed one of the fiercest battles of the 19^th century. 

The Battle of Solferino lasted for more than 15 hours and more than 40,000 were wounded. With the help of the villagers at Castiglione, he worked tirelessly, giving comfort and what medical care he could to the injured men.

Back at Geneva, Dunant published a book entitled "A Memory of Solferino” in 1862, which he put forward his ideas to foster the creation in every country of a society for the relief of the military wounded and capable of helping the army medical services to carry out their tasks.

In his effort to establish the Red Cross, Dunant neglected his business and he was declared bankrupt in 1867. Deprived of his citizenship, Dunant resigned from the ICRC and left Geneva to live in Paris.

In 1872, Dunant left Paris and went to London to pursue his ideas to convince people of the need for an international treaty for protection of prisoners-of-war.

Dunant left England in 1874 and wandered from place to place for the next twelve years, living in poverty and obscurity.

In 1887, Dunant returned to Heiden where he spent the rest of his days.

In 1895, one young journalist discovered Dunant warded in District Hospital.  Dunant became famous again after his story was published.

Dunant was awarded the first Nobel Peace Prize for humanitarian work in December 1901.

Dunant died on 30 October 1910 (82 years old).