BACKGROUND: Infant mortality has traditionally been analyzed as a function of birth weight and birth weight-specific mortality. Often, however, when comparing two populations, the population with higher overall mortality has lower mortality at low birth weights and a reversed pattern at higher birth weights. Methods standardizing birth weight, such as the "relative birth weight", have been prop...

background: the timing of maternal weight change in pregnancy may be an important determinant of birth weight. the objective of this study was to measure weight gain patterns from early pregnancy until delivery, and to examine the relationship between prenatal weight gain and low birth weight.   methods: a total of 500 pregnant women within 15-20 days of conception, with confirmed pregnancies a...

Background: Maternal nutrition during pregnancy affects the birth weight of neonates. Some of the undesirable pregnancy outcomes are linked to lower birth weights. This study aimed to assess the relationship between maternal dietary patterns, weight gain during pregnancy and nitric oxide (NO), as an endothelial relaxing factor, and the possible effects on birth weight.Materials and Methods: At ...

The prevalence of low birth weight is an important aspect of public health which has been linked to increased risk of infant death, increased cost of care, and a range of later life outcomes. Using data from a new Irish cohort study, I document the relationship between birth weight and socioeconomic status. The association of maternal education with birth weight does not appear to be due to the...