Ethnic variation in the size of infant at birth

Abstract

The impact of ethnicity and other maternal factors (BMI, parity, glucose tolerance, gestational age) on the size of the infant at birth was investigated in a relatively low socioeconomic status, multi-ethnic population at San Francisco General Hospital. A sample of 2,069 infants born to mothers of black, non-Hispanic white, Hispanic, and Chinese descent and whose mothers had received prenatal care at San Francisco General Hospital were studied. Maternal size, pregnancy history, and blood glucose were determined prenatally at 26-28 weeks gestation. Anthropometry was performed on the infant within 72 hours of birth. Black and Chinese infants were the lightest in weight, while Hispanic infants were the heaviest. When correction was made for maternal factors black infants were shown to be significantly (P < .05) lighter in birth weight than non-Hispanic white, Chinese, or Hispanic infants. Black infants were also significantly shorter in birth length and smaller in chest circumference. Chinese infants had significantly (P < .05) greater adiposity, as indicated by the sum of skinfold measurements, than both black and Hispanic infants. These findings are relevant to current practices in neonatal growth categories which are determined solely by birth weight and do not account for variations in body composition. Comparisons with a relatively higher socioeconomic status sample from Kaiser-Permanente Hospital (Oakland) shows a similar prevalence of low birth weight among blacks. These results support other results that ethnicity is a major independent influence on the weight of the newborn.

Reference values of body mass at. birth among native northern population of Russia

“…In all researched groups without exclusion the mean values of body mass at birth are within standard deviation for boys and girls recommended by the WHO. Length and weight at birth among newborns from East and West Siberia exceed not only the mean values suggested by the WHO, but also mean total body sizes of American newborns of corresponding race groups [8]. Length and weight of Russian infants of West Siberia is only a little bigger than corresponding measures of European Americans in California.…”

The strong impact of maternal marital status on birth body size before and during the Second World War in Poznań district, Poland

“…Maternal education and occupation, social class, maternal marital status, income, race/ethnicity, rural/ urban place of residence, maternal drinking and smoking habits, or even lower neighborhood status are considered the main factors significantly impacting birth outcomes. Researchers have emphasized that low SES translates to poor health awareness, lack and/or insufficient medical care during pregnancy, poor food quality, and higher levels of stress, which significantly affects the course and termination of pregnancy, and thus the perinatal status of new‐borns (e.g., Clayborne et al, 2017; Din‐Dzietham & Hertz‐Picciotto, 1998; Gage et al, 2013; Janevic et al, 2011; Joseph et al, 2007; Kramer, 1987; Little, 1990; Luo et al, 2004; Nobile et al, 2007; Osypuk et al, 2010; Schumacher et al, 1990; Shah et al, 2000; Shah et al, 2011; Shiono et al, 1997; Shoham‐Yakubovich & Barel, 1988; Torres‐Arreola et al, 2005). Moreover, women of lower SES have greater exposure to stress resulting from poor living conditions, unemployment, limited access to food, and so on, which are in turn increase the likelihood of adverse birth outcomes, including low birth weight, preterm birth, and infants small for gestational age (Campbell & Seabrook, 2016).…”