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Marital status disparities in maternal smoking during pregnancy, breastfeeding and maternal depression

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  • Kiernan, Kathleen
  • Pickett, Kate E.

Abstract

One of the dramatic recent changes in family life in Western nations has been the rise in non-marital childbearing. Much of this increase is attributable to the growth in cohabitation. But in some countries, notably the UK (and the USA) this is much less the case with significant proportions of children being born to parents who are not living together. This study uses data from the Millennium Cohort Study, a British birth cohort established in 2001, to examine whether the closeness of the tie between parents, as assessed by their partnership status at birth, is related to smoking during pregnancy, breastfeeding and maternal depression. Four sets of parents are distinguished representing a hierarchy of bonding or connectedness: married and cohabiting parents, and two groups of solo mothers, those closely involved with the father at the time of the birth and those not in a relationship. Smoking in pregnancy, breastfeeding and maternal depression tests for trend, adjusted for socio-demographic factors, showed that there was a statistically increased risk of adverse health and health behaviours by degree of parental connectedness. There were also consistent and statistically significant differences between married and non-married mothers. Particularly noteworthy was the finding that cohabiting mothers have greater risk of adverse outcomes than married women. Among the non-married set, there were also differences in risk of adverse outcomes. For smoking in pregnancy, the key difference for continuing to smoke throughout the pregnancy lay between mothers involved with partners and those lacking an intimate relationship. For breastfeeding, stronger parental bonds were associated with initiation of breastfeeding, with a clear difference between cohabiting mothers compared to solo mothers. There was also an increased risk of maternal depression with looser parental bonding, and among non-married groups this increased risk was most noticeable among cohabiting mothers when compared with solo mothers.

Suggested Citation

  • Kiernan, Kathleen & Pickett, Kate E., 2006. "Marital status disparities in maternal smoking during pregnancy, breastfeeding and maternal depression," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 63(2), pages 335-346, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:63:y:2006:i:2:p:335-346
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Wakschlag, Lauren S. & Pickett, Kate E. & Middlecamp, Molly K. & Walton, Laura L. & Tenzer, Penny & Leventhal, Bennett L., 2003. "Pregnant smokers who quit, pregnant smokers who don't: does history of problem behavior make a difference?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 56(12), pages 2449-2460, June.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Frank W. Heiland & Shirley H. Liu, 2006. "Family structure and wellbeing of out-of-wedlock children," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 15(4), pages 61-104.
    3. Julie Boucher & Anne T. M. Konkle, 2016. "Understanding Inequalities of Maternal Smoking—Bridging the Gap with Adapted Intervention Strategies," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-16, March.
    4. Teresa Castro Martín, 2010. "Single motherhood and low birthweight in Spain," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 22(27), pages 863-890.
    5. Laura J. Brown & Sarah Myers & Abigail E. Page & Emily H. Emmott, 2020. "Subjective Environmental Experiences and Women’s Breastfeeding Journeys: A Survival Analysis Using an Online Survey of UK Mothers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-27, October.
    6. Hideko Matsuo, 2006. "The Postponement of Motherhood and its Child Health Consequences: Birth Weight and Weight Gain during the First Year of Life," Vienna Yearbook of Population Research, Vienna Institute of Demography (VID) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna, vol. 4(1), pages 91-114.
    7. Buckles, Kasey, 2017. "Maternal Socio-Economic Status and the Well-Being of the Next Generation(s)," IZA Discussion Papers 10714, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    8. Deon A Simpson & Maria A Quigley & Jennifer J Kurinczuk & Claire Carson, 2019. "Twenty-five-year trends in breastfeeding initiation: The effects of sociodemographic changes in Great Britain, 1985-2010," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(1), pages 1-15, January.
    9. Juho Härkönen & Hande Kaymakçalan & Pirjo Mäki & Anja Taanila, 2012. "Prenatal Health, Educational Attainment, and Intergenerational Inequality: The Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 Study," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 49(2), pages 525-552, May.
    10. Min Lian & Pamela A Madden & Michael T Lynskey & Graham A Colditz & Christina N Lessov-Schlaggar & Mario Schootman & Andrew C Heath, 2016. "Geographic Variation in Maternal Smoking during Pregnancy in the Missouri Adolescent Female Twin Study (MOAFTS)," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(4), pages 1-13, April.
    11. Panico, Lidia & Bartley, Melanie & Kelly, Yvonne J & McMunn, Anne & Sacker, Amanda, 2019. "Family structure trajectories and early child health in the UK: Pathways to health," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 232(C), pages 220-229.

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