title: Nativity status/length of stay in the US and excessive gestational weight gain in New York City teens, 2008-2010.
abstract: Nativity status/length of stay in the US has been found to be associated with obesity. However, little work has examined the role of nativity status/length of stay in excessive gestational weight gain (EGWG) in adolescents. This study utilized New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene birth certificate data in a cross-sectional analysis of 15,715 singleton births to primiparous teen mothers (12-19 years) between 2008 and 2010. Nativity and length of stay in the United States (US) were obtained from birth certificates. EGWG was calculated using weight at delivery and pre-pregnancy weight. Prevalence ratios were calculated through generalized estimating equations to assess the strength of the association between nativity status/length of US residence and EGWG. For US-born teens, 43 % gained more weight than recommended as compared to 32 % for foreign-born teens who have lived in the US for less than 5 years (FB <5 years). Following adjustment for maternal demographics and other factors, US-born teens (adjusted prevalence ratios (APR) (CI) 1.26 [1.18,1.34]), FB 10+ years (APR (CI) 1.17 [1.07,1.28]), and FB 5-10 years (APR (CI) 1.11 [1.01,1.21]) were more likely to have gained weight excessively as compared to FB <5 years. US-born teens and FB teens that have been in the US longer than 5 years are more likely to gain weight excessively during pregnancy as compared to teens with fewer than 5 years in the US. These results identify a critical period when adolescents are in frequent contact with health care providers and can receive counseling regarding healthy weight gain.
authors: Department of Health Sciences, Lehman College, CUNY, Bronx, NY, 10468, USA, mary.huynh@lehman.cuny.edu.
authors: Mary H
authors: MH
authors: Huynh
authors: Luisa N
authors: LN
authors: Borrell
authors: Earle C
authors: EC
authors: Chambers
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D009519:New York City / Q000453:epidemiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011253:Pregnancy in Adolescence / Q000208:ethnology*; D044469:Racial Groups; D014481:United States; D015430:Weight Gain / Q000208:ethnology*; D044465:White People