A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control found many women across the country gain too much weight during pregnancy. And the problem, which also affects some Arizona women, can have serious consequences.

Nearly half of pregnant women gain too much weight during the pregnancies, according to the study. Although there was no data for Arizona, Brittney Klein, a nutrition consultant with the Arizona WIC program, says one in two women on the program gain more weight than is recommended during the course of their pregnancy.

"Some potential ramifications of that is it makes baby weight more difficult to lose after pregnancy, but also during pregnancy more likely to develop gestational diabetes, or heart disease or high blood pressure and for an infant, they can potentially develop an infant weighing more than 8 pounds and 13 ounces, which could lead to potential future obesity," said Klein

Klein noted in the last fiscal year, there were around 12,600 women enrolled in the Arizona WIC program.

According to the Institute of Medicine, women who are overweight and pregnant should gain 15 to 25 pounds, while obese women should only gain 11 to 20 pounds.