title: Maternal maya ancestry and birth weight in Yucatan, Mexico.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to analyze the association between maternal Maya ancestry and the birth weight of infants born in Yucatan, Mexico, during 2013.
  
  
  
  A total of 30,435 singletons born at term (≥37 weeks) in Yucatan during 2013 were analyzed. Birth weights, gestational ages, and maternal socioeconomic data were provided by the Ministry of Health of Yucatan. Maternal Maya ancestry was defined by the presence of Maya surnames in: (1) non-Maya surnames (NM-NM), (2) one Maya surname (NM-M), and (3) two Maya surnames (M-M). Biological and socioeconomic parameters were compared between the categories of ancestry through one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and a multiple regression model was used to analyze the association between ancestry and infants' birth weight controlling for influence of covariates.
  
  
  
  Mean birth weight was 3,114 g (SD = 406) (NM-NM: 3,150 g [SD = 404], NM-M: 3,106 g [SD = 402], M-M: 3,088 g [SD = 408]). With the biological and socioeconomic variables statistically adjusted for, the presence of one and two maternal Maya surnames was associated with decreases in birth weight of 42 g and 63 g, respectively. None of the interactions between ancestry and other predictors was statistically significant.
  
  
  
  The lower mean birth weights of Maya infants are consistent with studies reporting poor growth and nutritional status of Maya children from Yucatan. Historically adverse socioeconomic conditions experienced by the Maya population are probably linked to the relatively lower birth weights of their infants. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 28:436-439, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología Humana, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (Cinvestav)-Unidad Mérida, 97310, Mérida, Yucatán, México.
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Azcorra
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología Humana, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (Cinvestav)-Unidad Mérida, 97310, Mérida, Yucatán, México.
authors.forename: Adriana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vázquez-Vázquez
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigaciones Regionales Dr. Hideyo Nouguchi, 97000 Mérida, Yucatán, México.
authors.forename: Nina
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mendez
authors.affiliation: Servicios de Salud de Yucatán, 97000 Mérida, Yucatán, México.
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Carlos Salazar
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ecología Humana, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (Cinvestav)-Unidad Mérida, 97310, Mérida, Yucatán, México.
authors.forename: Sudip
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Datta-Banik
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001724:Birth Weight; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D000072741:Maternal Inheritance; D008800:Mexico; D009752:Nutritional Status; D055815:Young Adult