Mums' childhood abuse ups risk of having low birth weight babies

According to researchers at the University of Washington, poverty and maltreatment during adolescence are linked to delivering low-birth weight babies, which increases the risk of infant mortality and other health problems.

Amelia Gavin, lead author and assistant professor in the UW School of Social Work, stated, "What is important about this study is that it was the mother's experience of poverty and maltreatment in childhood, not her poverty or depression or obesity in adulthood, that contributed to her infant's low birth weight.”

Analyzing the mothers, researchers found that those women who were maltreated during childhood were more likely to indulge in substance abuse during school years.

136 women studied
To reach the study findings, the researchers followed 136 women who participated in the in the Seattle Social Development Project since adolescence.

They focused on women who became mothers after the age of 18, and studied the extent to which they were abused emotionally, physically, and sexually.

Researchers also considered the effect of poverty and substance use like smoking cigarettes, marijuana, drinking, and use during high school.

How maltreatments at youth leads to low birth babies?
Analyzing the mothers, researchers found that those women who were maltreated during childhood were more likely to indulge in substance abuse during school years.

Further, substance abuse during high school is a strong predictor of alcohol use and smoking during pregnancy. This increases the risk of delivering low birth weight babies.

“You can't separate a woman from her life experiences even though she's pregnant,” stated Gavin

“Our findings suggest that a mother's economic position in childhood and her experience of maltreatment during childhood have implications for her children born years late,” she added.

Call for universal screening
Considering the study findings, researchers recommend universal screening of expectant mothers for childhood abuses so that women at high risk of substance abuse during pregnancy can be identified and treated.

In the United States, around 8 percent of the infants are born weighing less than 2,500g. This increases the risk of death among newborns. Even those who survive are likely to suffer from obesity, diabetes, and other chronic diseases.

“Prenatal care is just an extension of care she has received throughout her whole life. We have to start in a girl's life when she's very young, providing her with comprehensive health care so we're not trying to fix everything during the nine-month period she's pregnant,” stressed Gavin.