title: Health behaviors and infant health outcomes in homeless pregnant women in the United States.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe selected demographics; maternal health behaviors before, during, and after pregnancy; and infant health outcomes among homeless women in the United States.
  
  
  METHODS
  Analyses are based on Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System data from 31 participating states from 2000 to 2007 that were linked to birth certificate data, which contain demographic and medical information collected through the state's vital records system. Responses were then weighted to be representative of all women who gave birth in each state during that year. Assessment of these data takes into account the complex sampling designs employed by the states.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Four percent of women reported homelessness within 12 months before pregnancy, with the highest percentage in Illinois, followed by Oregon and Washington. Homeless women were younger, unmarried, uninsured, less educated, less likely to initiate and sustain breastfeeding, and had less prenatal care and well-visits. They were also more likely to be black, Hispanic, smoke cigarettes, be underweight or have class III obesity, and not take preconception multivitamins. Infants had lower birth weights, a longer hospital stay, and were more likely to receive neonatal intensive care.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this study we provide additional insight into homelessness in the perinatal period and provide information on ways to direct interventions aimed at improving the health of homeless mothers and infants. Additional research is needed to determine factors that influence pregnancy weight gain and infant feeding practices among homeless women and how this affects infant health.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84602, USA. rickelle_richards@byu.edu
authors.forename: Rickelle
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.forename: Ray M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Merrill
authors.forename: Laurie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Baksh
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006703:Ill-Housed Persons / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007229:Infant Welfare; D008429:Maternal Welfare / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011295:Prenatal Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States; D015430:Weight Gain; D055815:Young Adult