ArticleThe Science of the total environment2016
Association between greenness, urbanicity, and birth weight.
Article in The Science of the total environment, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 45 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
45 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Systematic review of climate change interventions for improving child health.BMJ paediatrics open · 2026Pooled it
- Residential greenness and birth outcomes: evidence for reduced low birth weight from an umbrella review and harmonized normalized difference vegetation index synthesis.Frontiers in public health · 2026Pooled it
- Green Space and Health Equity: A Systematic Review on the Potential of Green Space to Reduce Health Disparities.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- Greenness, civil environment, and pregnancy outcomes: perspectives with a systematic review and meta-analysis.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2020Pooled it
- A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Associations between Green and Blue Spaces and Birth Outcomes.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- Prenatal greenness, air pollution, and birthweight: Assessing sensitive windows of exposure and sub-populations in a multi-exposure setting.Environment international · 2026Article
- Neighborhood environmental burden and the elderly's complete edentulism prevalence in the US.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Optimal Gestational Weight Gain and Fetal Growth in Urban Environments: The Role of Residential Greenness.Environment & health (Washington, D.C.) · 2025Article
- Greenspace Morphology and Preterm Birth: A State-Wide Study in Georgia, United States (2001-2016).Environmental health perspectives · 2024Article
- Neighborhood environments underpin screen time intervention success in children: Evidence from a study of greenspace and community programming across 130 US communities.Health & place · 2024Article
- Geographical approach analysis of the impact of air pollution on newborn intrauterine growth and cord blood DNA damage in Mexico City.Journal of exposure science & environmental epidemiology · 2024Article
- Urban Green Space and Perinatal Health Inequities in the United States: A Literature Review.The Journal of perinatal education · 2024Article
- Weekly prenatal PMEnvironmental research · 2024Article
- Changes in Residential Greenspace and Birth Outcomes among Siblings: Differences by Maternal Race.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Life Expectancy and Built Environments in the U.S.: A Multilevel Analysis.American journal of preventive medicine · 2023Article
- Impacts of Urban Blue-Green Space on Residents' Health: A Bibliometric Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Review
- The effect of prenatal temperature and PMEnvironment international · 2021Article
- Greenspace, Air Pollution, Neighborhood Factors, and Preeclampsia in a Population-Based Case-Control Study in California.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Modeling the impact of exposure reductions using multi-stressor epidemiology, exposure models, and synthetic microdata: an application to birthweight in two environmental justice communities.Journal of exposure science & environmental epidemiology · 2021Article
- Residential exposure to air pollution and access to neighborhood greenspace in relation to hair cortisol concentrations during the second and third trimester of pregnancy.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMore than half of the world's population lives in urban environments. Due to urban related factors (e.g. higher air pollution), urban residents may face higher risk of adverse health outcomes, while access to green space could benefit health. PURPOSE: We explored associations between urban and green land-use and birth weight.
methodsConnecticut, U.S., birth certificate data (2000-2006) were acquired (n=239,811), and land-use data were obtained from the National Land Cover Database. We focused on three land-uses; urban space, urban open space, and green space (i.e. forest, shrub, herbaceous, and cultivated land). We estimated fractions of greenness and urbanicity within 250 m from residence. A linear mixed effects model was conducted for birth weight and a logistic mixed effects model for low birth weight (LBW) and small for gestational age (SGA).
resultsAn interquartile range (IQR) increment in the fraction of green space within 250 m of residence was associated with 3.2g (95% Confidence Interval [0.4, 6.0]) higher birth weight. Similarly, an IQR increase in green space was associated with 7.6% [2.6, 12.4] decreased risk of LBW. Exposure to urban space was negatively correlated with green space (Pearson correlation=-0.88), and it showed negative association with birth outcomes. Results were generally robust with different buffer sizes and controlling for fine particles (PM2.5) and traffic.
conclusionsWe found protective associations by green space on birth outcomes. Increasing green space and/or reducing urban space (e.g. the greening of city environments) may reduce the risk of adverse birth outcomes such as LBW and SGA. Populations living in urban environments will grow in the next half century, and allocation of green space among urban areas may play a critical role for public health in urban planning.
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Registered trials
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