In interviews, overweight women reported dreading pre-natal appointments. But the authors say the women’s experiences hint at so-called soft eugenic practices to keep obese women from reproducing. According to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, obese pregnant women are at increased risk for miscarriage, high blood pressure and gestational diabetes, and are more likely to give birth to babies with congenital abnormalities. “Overweight women do not deliver well,” Dr. Jennifer Blake, the society’s chief executive, told a senate committee studying obesity last year. But, overall, women resented being viewed as “bad mothers, or bad potential mothers, because they were taking care of themselves the best they could, the way most pregnant women do,” McPhail said.

Source: National Post September 02, 2016 00:22 UTC