The Fatherhood Effect: This is the amount of weight new Dads can expect to gain

The Dad Bod struggle is real: according to a new study, men who become fathers can expect to put on around 4.4lb after their children are born. Researchers at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine tracked 10,200 men in various life stages (up to age 34) over 20 years. Their findings show that men who became dads put on weight and increased their body mass index (BMI) by 2.6 per cent compared to non-dads, who actually lost 1.4lbs during the same period of time.

"You have new responsibilities when you have your kids and may not have time to take care of yourself the way you once did in terms of exercise," says researcher Dr. Craig Garfield, an associate professor of pediatrics and of medical social sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, "Your family becomes the priority."

That's very touching but there might also be another factor at play here. According to the report, published in the American Journal of Men's Health:

"Anecdotal evidence does exist of fathers cleaning their children's dinner plates,"