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BEST PRACTICES: LOW BIRTH WEIGHT

Topic Overview

Low birth weight, by definition, is a newborn weighing less than 2,500 grams (5 lb. 8 oz. or less). Low birth weight is a significant health problem that contributes to infant mortality and to developmental and neurological disability.

Colorado has continually experienced a higher percentage of low weight births than the United States overall. In 2003, Colorado ranked 8th among the fifty states and the District of Columbia for the highest percentage of low weight births, with a 9.0 percent low birth weight rate. The Healthy People 2010 goal for the nation is 5.0 percent.

Background Documents

• Tipping the Scales:  Weighing in on Solutions to the Low Birth Weight Problem in Colorado - August 2000
  Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
• Low Birth Weight: Analysis and Recommendations - 1995
  The Future of Our Children
• Progressive Periodontal Disease and Risk of Very Preterm Deliver
  Obstetrics & Gynecology 2006;107:29-36
• The Health Status of Colorado's Maternal and Child Health Population, June 2006.

Evidence-Based Programs

Reducing Low Birthweight by Resolving Risks: Results from Colorado's Prenatal Plus Program,
American Journal of Public Health, November 2005, Vol. 95, No. 11, 1952-1956.

Related Topics

• Oral Health and Pregnancy
• Prenatal Program
• Smoking and Pregnancy

Resources

• Women's Health home page
• Maternal and Child Health County Data Sets
• Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS)