Effect of the maternal factors during pregnancy on the birth weight of neonates.
Date
1998-11-07
Authors
Athaudaarachchi, P. M.
De Silva, Y. A. S.
Gunaratne, C.
Jayasinghe, C. P.
Jayaweera, T. S.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Peradeniya
Abstract
The effect of maternal physical activity, nutrition, psycho-social stress and socio-economic
status during pregnancy, on the birth weight of neonates was studied. A quota sampling
method was used to collect data from 258 eligible Sinhalese postnatal women and their
neonates, by direct interviews and by anthropometric measurements at 3 hospitals in
Kandy, on randomly decided dates between 27/03/1997 and 20/0411997.
Using a scoring system which considered severity and duration of physical activity during
pregnancy, the mothers were divided in to high and low work groups and the mean birth
weights of their neonates compared using Student's t-test. The body fat content of the
mother was estimated using triceps skinfold thickness and used as an index of her overall
nutritional status to analyse it's correlation with the birth weight of the neonates using
Pearson'scorrelation test. Maternal height, postnatal weight and postnatal body mass index
was also similarly used for correlation, but the latter two were found to be inconsistent
indices.
The responses given to a questionnaire on psycho-social stress at work and at home was
used to group the mothers in to "minimally stressed" and "stressed" groups, and the mean
birth weights of their neonates compared using Student's t-test. Employing a scoring
systemdivided by us, which considered percapita income, house and property, education
andoccupation the mothers were divided in to three classes and the mean birth weights of
their neonates compared using Student's t-test. The significance of difference of the
incidence of low birht weights was also assessed using Chi square test.
The significance of the difference of mean birth weight of neonates was very high
(p<O.OOl)in the following instances:-
between the low and high physical activity groups of mothers, with the latter giving rise
to lower mean birht weight.
betweenthe minimally stressed and stressed groups of mothers, with the latter giving rise
to mean birht weight.
between high, mid and low socio-economic classes of mothers with latter giving rice to
lower mean birht weight respectively in each comparison.
There was a very highly significant incidence (p<O.OO1) of low birht weight deliveries
«2.5Kg) in the low socio-economic class compared to the others.
The maternal nutritional status, as assessed by us showed only a weak correlation with
birth weights of neonates (FO.37, p<O.OOI)explaining only 13.5% of variation of the
latter in term of the former.
Description
Keywords
Health Sciences , Birth Weight , Neonates , Maternal factors
Citation
Proceedings & Abstracts of the Annual Research Sessions,1998,University of Peradeniya, peradeniya, Sri Lanka, pp 56