Dallo FJ, Williams DR, Ruterbusch JJ, Mittleman MA, Sakyi KS, Mostofsky E, Rimawi A, Qu X, Reid TG, Schwartz K. Politically related stress and low-birth-weight infants among Arab, Asian, Hispanic, non-Hispanic Black, and non-Hispanic White women in Michigan.
Womens Health (Lond) 2023;
19:17455057231178118. [PMID:
37449491 DOI:
10.1177/17455057231178118]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Despite the high cost of low birth weight and the persistent challenge of racial inequities affecting the Arab American community, there has been limited research to identify and examine risk factors for these inequities with validated data on Arab American ethnicity and recent population stressors.
OBJECTIVES
This study examined whether the 2016 presidential election is associated with low birth weight among non-Hispanic White, Arab American, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic Black women.
DESIGN
This population-based study of singleton births in Michigan (2008-2017) used an algorithm to identify mothers who were of Arab descent.
METHODS
We used logistic regression to estimate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for the association between race/ethnicity and the odds of low birth weight. We examined whether these associations differed before and after the 2016 presidential election and according to maternal education.
RESULTS
There were 1,019,738 births, including 66,272 (6.5%) classified as low birth weight. The odds of having a low-birth-weight infant were higher among all minority women compared to non-Hispanic White women. The association was similar before and after the 2016 presidential election and stronger among women with higher levels of education.
CONCLUSION
This is the first study to estimate low birth weight among Arab American women in the context of political events. There are opportunities for future studies to discuss this issue in depth.
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