Hold up. Now, a lot of you out there just might be wondering, how long does a human pregnancy take exactly? A gynecologist may respond with something like this, “ Well, a full term is considered to be close to 38 to 42 weeks post the first day of your last menstruation.” And she isn’t wrong. However, only about 4% of pregnant women actually deliver on the promised delivery date, which is roughly 280 days from the first day of their last period (1). And this is with the aid of ultrasound to help date that D-day.
Oh, all right, we’re all aware that expecting a baby isn’t like expecting a delivery from Amazon Prime. Certain factors can cause variations when it comes to cooking that bun in your oven, such as the rate of progesterone rise, time of conception, age of the mother, the length of previous pregnancies, and also the birth weight. But how about a mother’s height?
Now, now, for all you skeptics out there, hold your horses! Stop rolling those eyes and hear us out. Your height having any influence upon determining when exactly you go into labor may sound absurd, but according to a new study published in the PLOS Medicine journal, maternal height is associated with a mother’s chances of preterm birth. This study, conducted at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital at the Center for Prevention of Preterm Birth, discovered that the shorter the expectant mother is, the shorter her period of gestation may be.
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In the United States of America, approximately half a million babies are prematurely born each year. As a matter of fact, the U.S.A. possesses one of the highest rates of preterm births amongst all the other developed countries in the world (2).
So, how exactly are preterm babies at a disadvantage? Well, babies born prematurely are placed at a higher risk of dangerous illnesses and serious health issues. Not only are preterm babies more at risk than babies born on time for birth defects, such as loss of hearing and vision problems, they’re also at risk of long-term issues, such as meningitis (an infection of your brain), pneumonia (an infection of your lungs), and vision problems such as ROP, i.e., retinopathy of prematurity. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), the complication that arises directly as a result of prematurity of birth accounts for roughly 1 out of 3 infant deaths per year.
Enough with the depressing talk, getting back to our original question…
So What Exactly Does Your Height Have To Do With This?
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The study that makes the claim of linking maternal height with chances of having a preterm baby tracked the pregnancies and subsequent births of close to 3500 expectant mothers and their babies across Norway, Denmark, and Finland. Though the authors of the study did not presume to draw any theories as to why a mother’s height may influence an early birth, other experts have come forward to suggest their own hypotheses. According to some, height could affect a female’s pelvis and uterus size, which suggests that babies conceived by shorter mothers would most probably receive less room for development, and this may lead to their early exit from the womb.
Now, What Steps Can You Take?
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So, chances are, you’re not particularly tall, scratch the sugar coating, you’re rather short, and you’re on a full on freak out mode now. What are you going to do?
Breath in. And Out. Relax.
According to the director of the Center for Disease Control, Louis Muglia, as well as the leading author of the original study, one must remember that it’s not only the height but several other factors that play a role in inducing premature labor. This could comprise everything from having a medical history of suffering from stress to a mother’s physical weight – all of these could play a part in increasing a woman’s risk for a preterm child. Height, according to Muglia, “is part of the equation.”
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If you’re a shorter than average expectant mother: do not, I repeat, do not panic. The best thing a mom-to-be of your stature can do for her adorable future baby is to simply try your best at being your healthiest and most stress-free version, throughout the (Ok, we’ll admit it, not a piece of cake) pregnancy. A very prudent point is never to forget or ignore a prenatal appointment with your gynecologist, pay attention to your weight, always ensure that you’re consuming all the required nutrients by following a balanced diet and diligently taking those prenatal vitamins.
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If you’re still concerned, soon-to-be mommy, then listen closely to what Dr. Joe Leigh Simpson, the Senior Vice President for March of Dime’s Research and Global Programs, has to say: “…many women in very unfavorable situations—stress, pollution, poor nutrition—still deliver at full term; they just have a higher risk of not making it to full term”
So remember, height is simply part of a bigger puzzle. Pregnancy, however, is a very sturdy phenomenon – otherwise, all short people would miss out on making a full term pregnancy.
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