Adolescents with adequate birth weight newborns diminish energy expenditure and cease growth.

Maternal energy requirements increase during pregnancy but the magnitude of this increment is unknown among adolescents. We determined the effects of maternal age and weight status on adjustments in gestational weight gain, resting energy expenditure (REE), and growth among adolescents. Weight, and growth rates of pregnant adolescents (PA) < or =17 y during late pregnancy were compared with changes in nonpregnant adolescents (NPA) over a 5-mo period.