Does emigration by itself improve birth weight? Study in European newborns of Indo-Pakistan origin.

OBJECTIVE

Our aim was to evaluate the effect of emigration on fetal birth weight (BW) in a group of pregnant women coming from the Indian subcontinent.

METHODS

This was a retrospective study in a mixed population of pregnant women from the Indian subcontinent that either moved to Europe or stayed in their original countries. The influence of emigration along with several pregnancy characteristics: GA at delivery, fetal gender, maternal age, height, weight, body mass index (BMI) and parity on BW was evaluated by means of multivariable linear regression analysis.

RESULTS

According to European standards, babies born to Indo-Pakistan emigrants and babies born to women staying in the Indian subcontinent were similarly small (BW centile 30± 29 and 30.1 ± 28, p<0.68). Multivariable regression demonstrated that emigration by itself did not exert a direct influence on BW (p  = 0.27), being BMI and gestational age at delivery the true determinants of BW (p<0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

Maternal BMI is the most relevant parameter affecting fetal growth regardless of the place of residence.