The Association of Marital Status with Low Birthweight North Carolina , 1994 - 1995

The percentage of births to unmarried women has increased substantially over the past several decades. Unmarried status continues to be a risk marker for poor birth outcomes. This study uses data from the 1994 and 1995 North Carolina resident live birth certificates to examine the association of marital status with low birthweight. After analyses, it was found that unmarried mothers are more likely to be young, have low education, smoke during pregnancy, be of minority race, and start prenatal care late. Within almost every risk factor category, unmarried mothers have a higher percentage low birthweight. For example, at less than nine years of education, unmarried mothers had a low birthweight percentage of 12.3 compared to 7.9 for married mothers of the same educational level. Overall, unmarried mothers are almost two times as likely to have a low-weight birth. After statistically controlling for other risk factors associated with marital status, unmarried mothers were found to be 30 percent more likely to have a low-weight birth than married mothers. Absence of the father’s name on the birth certificate was associated with a substantially higher risk of low birthweight for both married and unmarried mothers, perhaps because this indicates less social and economic support. The results of this study suggest that unmarried women should be targeted for prevention programs, due to their high-risk status. SCHS Studies NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT, HEALTH AND NATURAL RESOURCES A Special Report Series by the State Center for Health Statistics P.O. Box 29538, Raleigh, N.C. 27626-0538 www.schs.state.nc.us/SCHS/ North Carolina Public Health ®