TY - JOUR
T1 - Maternal Diet and Morbidity Factors Associated with Low Birth Weight in Haiti
T2 - A Case-Control Study
AU - Rashid, Abdirahim
AU - Park, Thomas
AU - MacNeal, Kenneth
AU - Iannotti, Lora
AU - Ross, Will
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank Sherlie Jean-Louis, the study coordinator, the nurses, Lucie Mezamour, Stephanie Joseph, and Chery Santhia, the staff at Hospital Fort St. Michel, and the Institute of Public Health at Washington University for their support of this project. This work was supported by the Mentors in Medicine International grant, an institutional grant from Washington University School of Medicine, as well as a grant from the Institute of Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis. The funders had no role in the design, analysis, or writing of this article.
Publisher Copyright:
© Abdirahim Rashid et al. 2018.
PY - 2018
Y1 - 2018
N2 - Objective: A matched, case-control study was conducted to examine the association between development of low birth weight (LBW) and maternal factors, including dietary intake, comorbidities, and socioeconomic factors, among women in Cap Haitien, Haiti. Design: Mothers who delivered LBW babies; defined as ≤2.5 kg, were identified by review of the medical record and matched to mothers of similar age, parity, with normal birth weight (NBW) babies. A survey was administered consisting of Women's Dietary Diversity Score (WDDS), maternal reporting of comorbidities, income, and educational level. Subjects: Women were eligible if they delivered and had newborns weighed within the last 2 years. Total study participants consisted of 32 cases and 34 controls matched for age, parity, and month of delivery. Results: Mothers who consume eggs were 78% less likely to have given birth to a LBW infant (OR 0.22 (95% CI: 0.05-0.87). Mothers with NBW babies had a nonsignificant trend towards higher WDDS. The prevalence of hypertension in mothers who were seen in the clinic at least once over the past 2 years was found to be 27%, and 78% of mothers were not aware of their diagnosis. Conclusion: Enhancing maternal nutrition during pregnancy has broad implications for reducing LBW, improving fetal health and reducing fetal predilection for chronic diseases in adulthood. Longitudinal prospective studies are needed to evaluate the selective benefit of eggs and other high-quality foods in protecting fetal growth. Efforts to improve knowledge and awareness of hypertension in Haiti should be undertaken.
AB - Objective: A matched, case-control study was conducted to examine the association between development of low birth weight (LBW) and maternal factors, including dietary intake, comorbidities, and socioeconomic factors, among women in Cap Haitien, Haiti. Design: Mothers who delivered LBW babies; defined as ≤2.5 kg, were identified by review of the medical record and matched to mothers of similar age, parity, with normal birth weight (NBW) babies. A survey was administered consisting of Women's Dietary Diversity Score (WDDS), maternal reporting of comorbidities, income, and educational level. Subjects: Women were eligible if they delivered and had newborns weighed within the last 2 years. Total study participants consisted of 32 cases and 34 controls matched for age, parity, and month of delivery. Results: Mothers who consume eggs were 78% less likely to have given birth to a LBW infant (OR 0.22 (95% CI: 0.05-0.87). Mothers with NBW babies had a nonsignificant trend towards higher WDDS. The prevalence of hypertension in mothers who were seen in the clinic at least once over the past 2 years was found to be 27%, and 78% of mothers were not aware of their diagnosis. Conclusion: Enhancing maternal nutrition during pregnancy has broad implications for reducing LBW, improving fetal health and reducing fetal predilection for chronic diseases in adulthood. Longitudinal prospective studies are needed to evaluate the selective benefit of eggs and other high-quality foods in protecting fetal growth. Efforts to improve knowledge and awareness of hypertension in Haiti should be undertaken.
KW - Haiti
KW - developmental origins of health and disease
KW - dietary diversity
KW - hypertension
KW - low birth weight
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85079117042&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1089/heq.2017.0063
DO - 10.1089/heq.2017.0063
M3 - Article
C2 - 30283860
AN - SCOPUS:85079117042
SN - 2473-1242
VL - 2
SP - 139
EP - 144
JO - Health Equity
JF - Health Equity
IS - 1
ER -