Indian mothers birth weaker children amidst ozone pollution woes: study

In India, the battle against air pollution starts before a person is even born and continues throughout their life. When pregnant women are exposed to polluted air, it can harm both them and their unborn babies, sometimes leading to birth defects.

A recent study published in the journal Science Advances found that ozone pollution in India is linked to lower birth weights in newborns. The research showed that in 2019, babies born to women exposed to ozone during their pregnancy weighed on average 54.6 grams less. This is a slight decrease from 2003, when the average reduction in birth weight was 57.9 grams.

High ozone levels reduce newborn weight

The study focused on low- and middle-income countries. It found that babies born to mothers who were exposed to high levels of ozone during pregnancy weighed less than those born to mothers who breathed cleaner air.

Birth weight is a crucial measure of a baby’s development. If a baby weighs less than two and a half kilograms at birth, it’s considered underweight. This could indicate that the mother didn’t receive enough nutrition during pregnancy or had health issues.

Babies with low birth weight often face more health problems later in life. Research suggests that these babies have a higher risk of dying from heart diseases and other causes.

In 2015, 14.6% of all newborns were underweight, which equates to more than two crore children. Most of these children (91%) were born in low- and middle-income countries. Almost half (48%) of these babies were born in South Asia, and 24% were born in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The study also found that air pollution plays a significant role in this issue. For every 10 parts per billion increase in ozone levels, a newborn’s birth weight can decrease by 19.9 grams. The study found a consistent decrease in birth weight with increased ozone exposure, and no safe limit of ozone was identified.

Ozone pollution linked to lighter newborns

Researchers wanted to understand how ozone pollution affects the birth weight of children. They looked at data from 697,148 newborns in 54 countries with low and middle incomes, including India, from 2003 to 2019.

More than half of the babies in the study were boys, and they weighed about three kilograms on average. About 39.1 percent of the women in the study, or 272,741 women, were from India. The data showed that the level of ozone was highest in North India and lowest in the Caribbean during the peak season, with an average level of 52.67 parts per billion.

The researchers used this data to estimate the effect of ozone pollution on the birth weight of newborns in 123 countries with low and middle incomes. They found that on average, babies weighed 43.8 grams less at birth due to ozone pollution. The biggest impact of ozone was seen in South Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.

The data showed that the biggest decrease in birth weight due to ozone was in Jordan, where babies weighed 64.3 grams less on average. There were also decreases in Palestine (62.5 grams), Iraq (57.1 grams), and Egypt (56.9 grams). In India, the decrease was 54.6 grams.

Air pollution, especially fine particles (PM2.5) can reduce a newborn’s weight

Previous studies have shown that air pollution can affect the development of a fetus. For example, one global study found that for every increase of 10 micrograms per cubic meter in the level of PM2.5 (fine particles in the air), the birth weight of newborns decreased by an average of 22 grams. PM2.5 was directly responsible for an average weight loss of 30 grams.

An increase of 10 micrograms per cubic meter in PM2.5 levels can increase the risk of low birth weight by 11 percent and the risk of premature birth by 12 percent.

However, no previous studies had looked at the effects of ozone on birth weight in countries with low and middle incomes. The problem is that more than half of the babies in these countries, especially in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, are not weighed at birth. So, most of the evidence we have is from high-income countries.

If a pregnant woman exposes herself to ozone during her entire pregnancy, the analysis found that the weight of her baby could decrease by 4.6 to 27.3 grams for every ten parts per billion increase in ozone levels.

Similar research in the US, China, and Korea showed that for every ten parts per billion increase in ozone levels, a baby’s birth weight could decrease by 5.7 to 7.9 grams. Researchers believe that effective policies to control rising pollution could help improve the health of newborns.

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