September 5, 2016.
According to a study conducted by the American Institutes of Health (NIH), a woman exposed to extreme temperatures during her pregnancy is at greater risk of giving birth prematurely.
Beware of hot weather and extreme cold
According to figures from the World Health Organization, every year, some 15 million babies are born prematurely around the world. We talk about premature babies when babies are born before the last 37 weeks of gestation. These births are not without consequences for the health of the child, particularly in terms of learning and visual and hearing disorders.
But can we avoid giving birth prematurely? According to American researchers, pregnant women should avoid extreme temperatures if they want to give birth at term. To reach these conclusions, published in the specialized journal Environmental Health Perspectives, the researchers examined the medical follow-up of more than 200,000 pregnant women across the Atlantic. At the same time, they analyzed the meteorological records during the different pregnancies.
Prematurity risks of up to 20%
Result: women who had been exposed to periods of heatwave or extreme heat during their pregnancy, had between 6% and 21% more risk of giving birth before term. As for those who had been in contact with very cold temperatures during their first 7 weeks of pregnancy, the risk of prematurity was 20%. To be sure not to mislead the results, the researchers also took into account the mother’s alcohol and tobacco consumption.
” Our work indicates that great care should be taken when minimizing the effects of extreme temperatures during pregnancy. », Comments Pauline Mendola, epidemiologist at NIH and author of the study. In France, despite a rather temperate climate, 60,000 babies are born prematurely each year.
For more information: Premature labor: sites of interest and references
