In today's Health Matters, children born by cesarean section are no more likely to become obese than if they were born naturally.

Brazilian researchers used data on three groups of several thousand people born in 1982, 1993 and 2004. The children were contacted at different ages until the oldest of them turned twenty-three.

Those born by c-section were more likely to be heavy compared to those born vaginally.

However that difference vanished once the researchers accounted for factors such as income, birth weight and mother's weight.

The team notes a pregnant woman's diet and smoking habits might influence the weight of a developing fetus.

Findings appear in the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition."