Violence against women affects their babies

Infants born to mothers who report family violence suffer more bouts of diarrhoea and infections of the airways such as pneumonia, which are the two leading causes of death and illness among children in developing countries.

Studies have linked violence against women to a higher risk of death among their children, but little is known about how family violence might affect children's risk of getting sick.

In Bangladesh infant mortality rates have been falling, but are still 10 times higher than those in rich nations. To explore whether different forms of violence against women are associated with increased incidence rates of diarrhea and respiratory tract infections among infants, researchers followed 3,132 Bangladeshi children whose mothers participated in a study of nutrition during pregnancy. Half of the women said they had experienced family violence in their lifetimes. Only 11 percent of the babies remained free of diarrheal or lung infections during 12 months of follow-up.

Overall, the babies whose mothers reported family violence were 30% more likely to develop diarrhea, and 31% more likely to develop lung infections. Any sort of family violence against mothers, from controlling behaviour to emotional violence to physical or sexual violence, independently boosted the risk that their babies would get sick with either condition. The babies of abused mothers had a lower birth weight, and were malnourished as well.

The relationship between violence and illness was stronger for female babies and in situations where the violence was more severe. The above findings add to the already existing evidence that violence against women can have an effect on their children, particularly in poverty-stricken areas where infant mortality is already high.