The Relationship of Neighborhood Socioeconomic Characteristics to Birthweight Among 5 Ethnic Groups in California
Michelle Pearl, PhD,
Paula Braveman, MD, MPH and
Barbara Abrams, DrPH
At the time of the study, Michelle Pearl was with the Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, and the Division of Epidemiology and Public Health Biology, University of California, Berkeley. Paula Braveman is with the Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of California, San Francisco. Barbara Abrams is with the Division of Epidemiology and Public Health Biology, University of California, Berkeley.
Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Michelle Pearl, PhD, Research Scientist, Sequoia Foundation, c/o Genetic Disease Branch, California Department of Health Services, 2151 Berkeley Way, Annex 4, Berkeley, CA 94704 (e-mail: mpearl1{at}dhs.ca.gov).
Objectives. This study sought to examine relationships betweenneighborhood socioeconomic characteristics and birthweight,accounting for individual socioeconomic characteristics, among5 ethnic groups.
Methods. Birth records were linked to census block-group datafor 22 304 women delivering infants at 18 California hospitalsduring 19941995. Information on income and additionalfactors was obtained from a surveyed subset of 8457 women. Neighborhoodlevels of poverty, unemployment, and education were examined.
Results. After adjustment for mothers' individual socioeconomiccharacteristics and other risk factors, less-favorable neighborhoodsocioeconomic characteristics were associated with lower birthweightamong Blacks and Asians. No consistent relationship betweenneighborhood socioeconomic characteristics and birthweight wasfound among Whites, US-born Latinas, or foreign-born Latinasoverall, but birthweight increased with less-favorable neighborhoodsocioeconomic characteristics among foreign-born Latinas inhigh-poverty or high-unemployment neighborhoods. These findingswere not explained by measured behavioral or cultural factors.
Conclusions. In addition to individual socioeconomic characteristics,living in neighborhoods that are less socioeconomically advantagedmay differentially influence birthweight, depending on women'sethnicity and nativity.
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