Healthy Before Pregnancy March of Dimes NC Preconception Health Campaign
Pathways to poor birth outcomes: Lesson Plan 1
Healthy before pregnancy Achieve a healthy lifestyle BEFORE becoming pregnant. Making healthy choices before pregnancy can greatly improve birth outcomes. A daily multivitamin, eating smart and moving more NOW makes a big difference.
Main messages Make your life simple—take a multivitamin Eat smart, move more Know your risks, have a plan Be a champion for healthy babies
Overview Section 1: Birth outcome terms Section 2: Causes of poor birth outcomes Section 3: Overview of birth defects Section 4: NC and birth outcomes Section 5: What a healthy pregnancy looks like
Section 1: Birth outcome terms
Birth outcome terms Infant mortality Birth defects Unintended pregnancies Environmental factors Prenatal care Premature birth (prematurity) Epidemic Low birthweight
Infant mortality
Birth defects
Unintended pregnancies
Environmental factors
Prenatal care
Premature birth (prematurity)
Epidemic Source : National Center for Health Statistics, final natality data. Retrieved September 29, 2010, from marchofdimes.com/peristats. © 2010 March of Dimes Foundation. All rights reserved.marchofdimes.com/peristats Preterm Births: US, 2007
Epidemic Source : National Center for Health Statistics, final natality data. Retrieved September 29, 2010, from marchofdimes.com/peristats. © 2010 March of Dimes Foundation. All rights reserved.marchofdimes.com/peristats Preterm Births by race/ethnicity: North Carolina, Average
Low birthweight =
Section 2: Causes of poor birth outcomes Genetic birth defects Maternal illness Medication Environment (smoking, drugs, drinking) Age of mother “Don’t know” category
Genetic birth defects
Causes of poor birth outcomes: Maternal illness
Medication
Environment
Age of mother Teen mothers are more likely to: Have babies born to soon and/or too small Have babies that die Go into labor too early, have anemia and high blood pressure
“Don’t know” category
Section 3: Overview of birth defects 120,000 or 1 in 33 U.S. babies are born with birth defects Most common include: Heart defects Cleft lip/palate Down syndrome Spina bifida
Single gene defects Achondroplasia Marfan syndrome Tay-Sachs disease Cystic fibrosis
X-linked birth defects For example: Hemophilia
Birth defects: Chromosomal For example: Down syndrome Down syndrome. Source: U.S. Department of Energy Human Genome Program.
Birth defects: Metabolic disorders For example: Phenylketonuria (PKU) Copyright © March of Dimes Foundation, Inc.
Birth defects: Multifactorial Cleft lip/palate Neural tube defects Heart defects Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
Neural tube defects Anencephaly Spina bifida Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
Neural tube defects 2,500-3,000 U.S. babies are born each year with NTDs Another 1,500 are still born or terminated because of this birth defect In NC, approximately 200 pregnancies are affected by a NTD each year
Section 4: North Carolina and birth outcomes
An average week in NC: How many babies are born? 2,459
How many babies are born to teen mothers (ages 15-19)? 283 An average week in NC:
How many babies are born to mothers who receive inadequate prenatal care? 226 An average week in NC:
How many babies are born prematurely? 334
An average week in NC: How many babies are born low birthweight (weighing less than 5 lbs, 8 oz)? 223
An average week in NC: How many babies die before their first birthday? 21
NC ranks 45 th for infant mortality NC ranks 41 st for premature birth © 2009 March of Dimes Foundation. All rights reserved. How does NC compare?
Healthy birth outcomes
Main messages Make your life simple - take a multivitamin Eat smart, move more Know your risks, have a plan Be a healthy babies champion