To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Fetal Growth And Adult Hypertension: Mother's Nutrition Not The Only Factor URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/2D4CA.htm Doctor's Guide June 27, 1997
LONDON -- June 27, 1997 -- The theory that undernutrition of the mother in pregnancy leads to a combination of a large placenta and low birth weight, and hence predisposes towards cardiovascular disease in adulthood needs further examination, says a paper in this week's British Medical Journal (BMJ). The authors of this prospective cohort study, who studied 2,507 women who gave birth to a single live infant, looked at the factors that influence the relative weights of the placenta and the newborn infant. They say that there are many variable factors involved including female sex, Asian parentage, socioeconomic status and gestational age. They found no consistent relations between the placental weight to birthweight ratio and measures of newborn size. But some of the factors which predict an increased placental weight, such as lower socio-economic status, are themselves predictors for hypertension in later life, they say, and the environmental factors relating to this continue to be influential long after birth. The usefulness of the placental to birthweight ratio as a marker of fetal growth is diminished because it is influenced by many factors apart from maternal nutrition, the authors conclude. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.