Even though the United States has many advances in medical technology, the rate of perinatal mortality (the number of babies who die per 1,000 live births) is much higher than many other industrialized countries. This is especially true in cities such as Chicago and neighborhoods such as Austin. There are many reasons for this. Two major causes for newborn death are low birthweight and premature birth. While we cannot eliminate these problems we would like to reduce their likelihood.

In Austin, the risk of delivering a baby prematurely or with low birth weight is higher than the rest of Chicago. In 1997, 10.4% of all babies were born with a low birth weight (defined as less than 5 pounds 8 ounces), whereas 17.4% of babies from Austin had a low birth weight. Also in that year, 11.5% of babies in Chicago were born prematurely (defined as before the 37^th week of pregnancy), but 16.4% of newborns were premature from the Austin neighborhood.

In the following WebPages and links we will be discussing the components of a healthy pregnancy and the behaviors which can be avoided to increase the chances of having a healthy baby. Please feel free to browse the pages and share the information with the women on your block who may be pregnant or looking to become pregnant.

The topics will be organized as follows: First we will describe a behavior which has an effect on pregnancy (for example, smoking). Information on the (in this case harmful) effects of the behavior on the pregnancy will be discussed and some background information on the prevalence of the problem in your neighborhood. Finally, we will discuss the importance of changing this behavior and where you can refer your neighbors to for help if they desire (such as quit smoking classes in Austin). If you have any questions along the way, there will be opportunities to ask them and we will try to respond as quickly as we can.