Malnutrition higher in children born to child brides -
Infants born to child brides in India (married before the age of 18) have a higher risk of malnutrition than children born to older mothers, according to research published on bmj.com today. However, low birth weight and childhood mortality are not significantly linked with the age of the mother, concludes the research, and the child's malnutrition was not related to the mother's body mass index.
This article is another example of attempting to establish causal relationships when there are virtually none. The link between "child brides" is tenuous at best. Instead, the paper correctly suggests that the "child bride" is the most likely to be "poor, uneducated, reside in rural areas, and have low access to health care.
In addition, the paper clearly recognizes that this problem is a social and cultural one, having little or nothing to do with the mother herself, except as indicated above.
So, in effect, we have another study that is establishing a causal relationship to the obvious. Those that are poor and have low access to health care suffer more health problems. Anyone surprised?
