Obesity behind most child birth maternal deaths

More than half of mothers who died during child birth were overweight, a report found yesterday.

The Confidential Enquiry into Maternal and Child Health (CEMACH) said maternal-related deaths in the UK are at a two-decade high.

In its annual report, Saving Mothers' Lives: reviewing maternal deaths to make motherhood safer, it found that of the almost 300 women who died during childbirth between 2003 and 2005 from pregnancy-related conditions, more than half were obese. The deaths left 520 children motherless, it added.