Pre-pregnancy body mass index and inter-pregnancy weight change among women of Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin and the general Finnish population.

Item request has been placed! ×
Item request cannot be made. ×
loading   Processing Request
Read More Add to Saved list
  • Additional Information
    • Subject Terms:
      RUSSIA; SOMALIA; FINLAND
    • Abstract:
      Objectives: We studied the differences in the mean pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and mean inter-pregnancy weight change in women of Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin and women in the general Finnish population. Methods: The population-based samples were from the Migrant Health and Wellbeing Study and the Health 2011 Survey conducted in six cities in Finland in 2010–2012. This study included women with at least one birth in Finland. Data on their previous pregnancies in Finland were obtained from the National Medical Birth Register for 318 Russian, 584 Somali and 373 Kurdish origin women and for 243 women in the general Finnish population (reference group). Data on pre-pregnancy weight and height were self-reported in early pregnancy. Linear logistic regression was the main method of analysis. Results: The unadjusted mean pre-pregnancy BMI was higher in Somali (27.0 kg/m2, p<0.001) and Kurdish (25.8 kg/m2, p<0.001) women, but lower in Russian (22.2 kg/m2, p<0.001) women than in the reference group (24.1 kg/m2). The adjusted coefficients for the difference in the mean pre-pregnancy BMI were −1.93 (95% CI −2.77 to −1.09) for Russian, 1.82 (95% CI 0.89–2.75) for Somali and 1.30 (95% CI 0.43–2.17) for Kurdish women compared with the reference group. Among women with at least two births, no statistically significant difference was observed in the mean inter-pregnancy weight change between the migrant groups and the reference group. Conclusions: Somali and Kurdish women had higher mean pre-pregnancy BMIs than women in the general Finnish population and may need special support and health promotion strategies for weight management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
    • Abstract:
      Copyright of Scandinavian Journal of Public Health is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)