Abstract
The objective of this study was to investigate whether maternal socio-economic status during childhood and at the time of pregnancy each have unique associations with infant birthweight when biological determinants of birthweight are controlled. The data are from a three-generation study which contains information on the mothers and grandmothers of 987 singleton infants, collected over a period of 25 years. We used simple and multivariable regression to assess the association between indicators of a woman's socio-economic status and her offspring's birthweight. Women who grew up in poor households had smaller babies than those who did not, and a unit increase in the income/needs ratio (analogous to the poverty index), in non-poor households only, was associated with a 185 g [95% CI 70, 200] increase in infant birthweight. Maternal age at the index infant's birth had a positive association with birthweight that diminished as women reached their mid-twenties. Among mothers with low education, high grandmaternal education was associated with a 181 g [95% CI 71, 292] increase in infant birthweight, while high grandmaternal education had no effect among infants whose mothers were relatively well-educated. This interaction between grandmaternal and maternal education is consistent with claims that cumulative stress is an important mechanism connecting maternal socio-economic status and infant health.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 310-318 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology |
| Volume | 21 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 2007 |
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Keywords
- Birthweight
- Grandmaternal education
- Maternal age
- Maternal childhood socio-economic status
- Maternal education
- Maternal socio-economic status
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Epidemiology
- Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
Cite this
The effect of maternal socio-economic status throughout the lifespan on infant birthweight. / Astone, Nan Marie; Misra, Dawn; Lynch, Courtney.
In: Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, Vol. 21, No. 4, 07.2007, p. 310-318.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - The effect of maternal socio-economic status throughout the lifespan on infant birthweight
AU - Astone, Nan Marie
AU - Misra, Dawn
AU - Lynch, Courtney
PY - 2007/7
Y1 - 2007/7
N2 - The objective of this study was to investigate whether maternal socio-economic status during childhood and at the time of pregnancy each have unique associations with infant birthweight when biological determinants of birthweight are controlled. The data are from a three-generation study which contains information on the mothers and grandmothers of 987 singleton infants, collected over a period of 25 years. We used simple and multivariable regression to assess the association between indicators of a woman's socio-economic status and her offspring's birthweight. Women who grew up in poor households had smaller babies than those who did not, and a unit increase in the income/needs ratio (analogous to the poverty index), in non-poor households only, was associated with a 185 g [95% CI 70, 200] increase in infant birthweight. Maternal age at the index infant's birth had a positive association with birthweight that diminished as women reached their mid-twenties. Among mothers with low education, high grandmaternal education was associated with a 181 g [95% CI 71, 292] increase in infant birthweight, while high grandmaternal education had no effect among infants whose mothers were relatively well-educated. This interaction between grandmaternal and maternal education is consistent with claims that cumulative stress is an important mechanism connecting maternal socio-economic status and infant health.
AB - The objective of this study was to investigate whether maternal socio-economic status during childhood and at the time of pregnancy each have unique associations with infant birthweight when biological determinants of birthweight are controlled. The data are from a three-generation study which contains information on the mothers and grandmothers of 987 singleton infants, collected over a period of 25 years. We used simple and multivariable regression to assess the association between indicators of a woman's socio-economic status and her offspring's birthweight. Women who grew up in poor households had smaller babies than those who did not, and a unit increase in the income/needs ratio (analogous to the poverty index), in non-poor households only, was associated with a 185 g [95% CI 70, 200] increase in infant birthweight. Maternal age at the index infant's birth had a positive association with birthweight that diminished as women reached their mid-twenties. Among mothers with low education, high grandmaternal education was associated with a 181 g [95% CI 71, 292] increase in infant birthweight, while high grandmaternal education had no effect among infants whose mothers were relatively well-educated. This interaction between grandmaternal and maternal education is consistent with claims that cumulative stress is an important mechanism connecting maternal socio-economic status and infant health.
KW - Birthweight
KW - Grandmaternal education
KW - Maternal age
KW - Maternal childhood socio-economic status
KW - Maternal education
KW - Maternal socio-economic status
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34250159824&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=34250159824&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/j.1365-3016.2007.00821.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1365-3016.2007.00821.x
M3 - Article
C2 - 17564587
AN - SCOPUS:34250159824
VL - 21
SP - 310
EP - 318
JO - Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology
JF - Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology
SN - 0269-5022
IS - 4
ER -