Guideline development for the prevention of infant and young child obesity

Objective: It's aimed to prepare an evidence-based guideline for healthcare professionals who mostly interact with pregnant women and their babies in the first 1000 days, which will enable the identification of patients at risk for obesity and the implementation of appropriate preventive actions. Method: PubMed database was searched for the modifiable obesity risk factors and intervention studies for the prevention of obesity in the first 1000 days. Only systematic reviews and meta-analyses were included. The quality of the articles was evaluated using the AMSTAR-2 tool. The evidence and recommendation rating system of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network was used to develop a guideline. Results: The study included, 51 studies concerning risk factors and 38 studies on preventive measures and the risk factors with the highest level of evidence (1++) were found to be maternal smoking during pregnancy, maternal type-1 diabetes, maternal high pre-pregnancy BMI, and high birth weight. Among the preventive actions, the ones with the highest recommendation level (A) are to provide nutrition and physical activity counseling to pregnant women to prevent GDM and GWG, GDM screening and treatment (if any), breastfeeding counseling for parents, education that includes responsive feeding, physical activity, sedentary time, screen time, sleep and baby soothing techniques for parents. Conclusion: The first 1000 days are full of unique opportunities to prevent obesity. During this period, health professionals, who are in frequent contact with families, can protect many children from obesity with the right guidance and suggestions they will make via the evidence based guidelines developed. Key words: , obesity, prevention, , first 1000 days, evidence based, guideline.