My mother is taller, I am stronger

In developing countries, higher mothers will give birth to healthier babies, less likely to die when they are born, underweight or stunted, a new study in the US shows.

'This is the first time we have seen the effects of maternal health on children's health,' said Dr. SV Subramanian, Harvard School of Public Health.

Subramaian and colleagues examined health data from 54 developing countries in the period 1991-2008 with nearly 3 million deliveries of more than one-third of women aged 15-49. The height of mothers is divided into 5 steps, from less than 1m45 to above 1m60.

Of the more than 3 million babies born, 12% of children die before the age of 5. With each step in the height ladder, the risk of death in children increases 'markedly'.

Babies born in the lowest mothers have a higher risk of death when they are small compared to those born to mothers with the highest rate of 40%. The risk of death among babies born to mothers is the highest of 1 in 14, compared with 1/7 in children who are the children of the lowest mothers.

In addition, adult height is closely related to nutrition when young. The 'investment' of nutrition for children, especially girls in the age of 5-15 will support the later height.

Source: Reuters