Does becoming a dad make you fat?

As life-changing experiences go by, few can compare to becoming a parent. It can lead you to redefine your relationship with your own parents, it can instill a sobering sense of responsibility, and it can even cause you to examine your own mortality. Now we know that it can also get fat.

That’s the finding of a 20-year study of more than 10,000 men published in the American Journal of Men’s Health. In addition to a bundle of joy, fatherhood also generates an average of 4.4 extra pounds for a six-foot dad. A father who does not live with his children can expect to gain 3.3 pounds, while men who do not become fathers actually lose weight, about 1.4 pounds on average. Other factors that can influence weight gain were taken into account, such as age, race, education, income, screen time, and daily activity, so the weight gain was exclusively due to The paternity. This additional weight gain also has the effect of increasing the father’s risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.

This is probably not surprising news for dads. Sleepless nights, extra food, and a mountain of leftover picky eaters isn’t exactly a recipe for weight loss. Time becomes a luxury for parents and there is less time to spare to take care of yourself.

Dr. Craig Garfield is the study’s lead author and associate professor of pediatrics and medical social sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and an assistant pediatrician at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago. Dr. Garfield attributes the weight gain to differences in lifestyle and eating habits between the three groups. “You have new responsibilities when you have your children and you may not have time to take care of yourself as you did before in terms of exercise. Your family becomes the priority,” he said.

Fortunately, Dad Bod is all the rage right now, so dads don’t need to bemoan the fact that their kids ruined their figure. However, for the sake of our children, dads need to focus a little more on their own health.

So what can parents do? Stop eating the leftovers to start! Dr. Garfield admitted that his main flaw was finishing his children’s leftover pizza. Dads can be active with their kids too – according to Harvard Medical School, just 30 minutes of moderate playtime with your kids can burn between 120 and 178 calories. Vigorous play can burn 150 to 222 calories per half hour. So think of your kids as living kettlebells that demand to be exercised!

Kettlebells that give hugs.