CALGARY, Alberta, April 26 (UPI) -- A Canadian study finds that babies born to women who restrict milk intake during pregnancy have a lower birth weight on average.
Researchers tracked 2,091 women taking prenatal classes at three Calgary hospitals, Canwest News Service reported. They found that women who drank one cup or less of milk per day had smaller babies than women with a larger milk intake.
On average, babies born to women who drank little milk were 123 grams (4.3 ounces) lighter than those whose mothers drank more milk.
Dr. Kristine Koski of McGill University in Montreal said the weight difference might seem trivial. But she said that babies born to women who smoke during pregnancy are only 150 grams lighter than those born to non-smokers.
"These are healthy women with no other risk factors for whom this effect is being seen," Koski said.
