Bengaluru is presenting a worrisome trend with an increasing number of underweight babies being born daily. And this is happening because of a rise in number of cases of couples opting to have babies using assisted reproductive techniques (ART). Besides this, experts also point at growing number of cases of hypertension and diabetes among young mothers-to-be as the cause for low birth weight or premature birth among babies. Interestingly, obesity too is being considered a cause for premature births or low birth weight. Not surprisingly then, Experts say at least 15 per cent of newborns in the city are either of low birth weight or premature.
Not only does it pose a traumatic experience for parents of such babies, it also comes as a huge financial burden to ensure that the new-born survives through it as such babies need to be admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), which are very costly.
Take the case of program developer Rajiv Mehta (name changed to protect his identity). His wife delivered their baby in the 26th week of pregnancy (The average duration of human pregnancy is 40 weeks or 280 days). Their gynaecologist attributed the pre-term delivery to the baby being conceived through assisted reproductive techniques. As if the high costs of the in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) to conceive the child was not enough, Mehta had to bear a bill – including charges for admission to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) that can go up to Rs 15,000 a day – of close to Rs six lakh by the time his baby was discharged from the private hospital.
The high costs of ensuring that the prematurely born babies survive remains common notwithstanding whether the pre-term birth is due to ART or whether the hypertension/diabetes suffered by the expectant mother.
Dr Karthik Nagesh, HOD of Neonatology, Manipal Hospitals said, “Many women these days want to conceive only after they settle down in their career. If they are working through the pregnancy because of a hectic professional life they may not be able to pay much attention to nutrition. The chances of infertility are higher these days and reproducing through artificial means could pose risks of pre-term deliveries and low birth weight.”
Dr Ranjan Kumar Pejavar, a senior specialist in neonatology at Meenakshi Hospital (formerly K R Hospital) in Hanumanthanagar says, “A low birth weight baby is a baby that has not grown properly inside the womb. Because of hypertension, there is irregular blood supply leading to a preterm delivery. In an urban scenario the increase in stress is one of the main causes. (Also) Today there has been an increase in the cases of multiple pregnancies (twins being born) because of assisted reproduction technologies which also results in low birth weight babies in many cases. Since all their organs are not immature they need NICU admissions as they need assistance with nutrition and feeds.”
The working and career-oriented mothers often do not understand the importance of a relaxed pregnancy as they find it difficult to manage their work and personal life balance which again results in pre-term births. The increasing incidence of smoking and alcohol consumption also pose a risk factor.
Experts feel that hypertension is the one problem that can actually be avoided during pregnancy as it is an induced condition due to the lifestyle/career pursuits by the expecting woman.
Dr Adinarayana Makam, foetal medicine specialist, People Tree Hospital in Yeshwanthpur, says, “A majority of the pre-term deliveries are linked to body mass index (BMI). Anybody with the BMI of above 30 is considered to have a risk factor and above 35 is at significant risk. These days, more than malnourishment, obesity is considered a bigger factor as it affects the metabolism. The placenta of a mother with higher body mass index may not work as expected which is why one must decide to conceive only with an ideal body mass index which varies from 18-25 depending on the height and weight of that person.”
