The effect of socio-economic status on birth weight in Saudi Arabia

In order to study the effect of socio-economic status on the birth-weight of Saudi newborns, we studied a random sample of 4498 pregnant Saudi women from four major hospitals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Birth-weight was classified into four categories for comparison, using a modified Dowding (1981) classification: low birth weight (less than 2500 g), sub-optimal (2500-2999 g), optimal (3000-3999 g) and above optimal (greater than 4000 g). Measure of the socio-economic status was based on the family income, since in Saudi Arabia this is the most potent indicator which affects living standards. The results indicate that there is a direct correlationship between family income and birth weight (P less than 0.001, chi 2 test).