UM study shows Hispanic mothers have fewer premature, low-weight babies

Jun. 23--They share the same socioeconomic disadvantages as other minority groups, but Hispanic women have fewer low-birth-weight babies and lower rates of premature births than black and white mothers, South Florida researchers have found.

An 11-year study by Dr. Victor Hugo Gonzalez-Quintero and colleagues at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine reviewed more than 80,000 deliveries at Jackson Memorial Hospital, and found Hispanic mothers had the lowest rate of low-birth-weight infants, 9 percent, compared with 18 percent for non-Hispanic black mothers and 11 percent for non-Hispanic white mothers.

Researchers say they are not sure why, but suspect family and cultural influences may be key factors, with many Hispanic families providing care, attention and support for women during pregnancy.

The study, the largest ever done at a single institution to examine the issue, compared the maternity experiences of South Florida women from the Caribbean and Central America and South America with non-Hispanic blacks and whites from Jan. 1, 1989, to Dec. 31, 1999. During that time, 50 percent of the deliveries in Miami-Dade occurred at Jackson, the principal hospital providing care to the indigent population.

The findings, published in The Journal of Reproductive Medicine, echo previous studies in border states such as Texas and California, where 70 percent of the Hispanic new moms in the studies were of Mexican heritage, Gonzalez-Quintero said.

He wanted to see whether the phenomenon held true across other Hispanic groups, and it did.

"South Florida is the ideal place to look at this," Gonzalez-Quintero said. "It is fascinating. I think if we could find out why they do better, this could be used to address disparities for other minorities, which should be one of our No. 1 goals of public health."

The study was not an attempt to determine why the Hispanic outcomes were generally better, but there are a number of possible explanations, he said, including family and cultural influences.

"They have their ideas about nutrition from their home country, and they may have a higher respect for maternal role. The woman is the center of the household, so when someone is pregnant in the family they are taken care of more cautiously," he said.

Jane Delgado, president of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, suggested other factors may also play a role.

"We know [from earlier studies that] Hispanic women are less likely to smoke or use alcohol," she said. "They eat more fruits and vegetables and less processed food, and we welcome babies into our families. They focus the family resources to help. A baby is considered a gift. It's a very positive thing."

Ada Gonzalez, of Miramar, whose first child, Alana Rosalie, was born at Memorial Hospital West almost 10 months ago, said she got advice and lots of support during her pregnancy from her mom, her aunt and her sister, her husband's family and the neighbors in her largely Latin neighborhood.

"They were constantly saying, 'Rest,' and they â?¦ called a lot. They wanted to help with the cleaning up, and the cooking, and wanted the renovations for the baby's room done early," said Gonzalez, who was born in Puerto Rico. "They told me to make sure to eat a lot of fruit, all the veggies, and the root vegetables. The neighbors brought over plantains to make sure I was getting enough potassium."

Melissa Vazquez, 30, who is second-generation Cuban-American, had a similar experience before her baby boy was born a month ago at Holy Cross Hospital. "Both my brothers are in town, and my parents live in Hollywood. They were always telling me to rest and relax, and calling to ask if I'd eaten and what I was eating. I've always eaten healthy," said Vazquez, who lives in Fort Lauderdale.

Thelma O'Connor, 34, of Pompano Beach, went through the pregnancy for her son James, 1, without having her big family around her because most of them are still back in Mexico, she said. But her neighbors, a French couple and a Hispanic mom with a 4-year-old son, looked in on her often and brought food to make sure she ate right, she said.

"And my mom is here visiting right now from Mexico, so that's good," O'Connor said.

A Palm Beach County study on access to prenatal care released two years ago showed there are other roadblocks preventing women from getting early prenatal care.

Some did not understand the benefits of early care, and those who had lived in this country for less than five years were unclear about how to get insurance. Other difficulties included a lack of transportation and overbooked and understaffed public health clinics.

But the study, done by a Johns Hopkins University researcher for the Maternal Child Family Health Alliance of Palm Beach County, also found that when pregnant women, whether Hispanic, black or white, were part of a small, tight-knit community, they were likely to get advice on the importance of seeing a doctor early and help in seeking early prenatal care.

Nancy McVicar can be reached at nmcvicar@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4593.

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