Birthweight Declined During the Pandemic and It Is Falling Further Post-pandemic

TL;DR

This study finds that birthweight declined during the COVID-19 pandemic and further decreased post-pandemic, with associated increased maternal health risks, highlighting potential long-term health implications.

Contribution

It provides empirical evidence of a sustained decline in birthweight during and after the pandemic, and links this to increased maternal health risks, using New York hospital data.

Findings

Birthweight declined by 7g during the pandemic.

Post-pandemic, birthweight fell an additional 17g below pre-pandemic levels.

Mothers giving birth post-pandemic are 27% more likely to have higher mortality risk.

Abstract

Recent literature reports mixed evidence on whether birthweight has decreased during the pandemic. In this paper, we use New York's hospital inpatient discharge data and contribute to this ongoing debate in multiple ways. First, we corroborate that birthweight has declined during the pandemic by 7g (grams). Second, we provide the first empirical evidence that, after the pandemic, not only birthweight has not reverted to the pre-pandemic levels, but it has fallen lower, 17g below the pre-pandemic levels. Third, in the post-pandemic years, mothers who are hospitalized to give birth are 27% more likely to be at a higher mortality risk and 8% more likely to have a higher severity of illness. Disruptions to birthweight could have far-reaching consequences for the health, longevity, and well-being of the population. Therefore, understanding the full scope of COVID-19's influence on birthweight is a vital and timely practice. Future research is needed to test whether our results are driven by true underlying changes in birthweight and complications or by healthcare providers being induced (financially or otherwise) to report birthweight differently.