The report found that older women and teenagers were most likely to have a low birth weight baby.
It is already well established that smoking leads to reduced birth weight and an increased risk of premature birth.
Between 1985 and 1996, the incidence of low birth weight babies in the US rose from 6.8% to 7.4%.
Environmental factors premature delivery, low birth weight, maternal infections and maternal nutrition have been implicated in autism, as well as advanced parental age.
Women with both disease also had a higher risk of developing anaemia, miscarrying, having a low birth weight baby and delivering prematurely.
The study excluded twins and triplets as they are known to be at increased risk of premature birth and low birth weight.
The findings indicated the relationship between birth weight and pollution was dose related - the higher the exposure, the lower the average birth weight.
Dr Wang is seeking to identify specific genetic traits that make women more likely to give birth to a low birth weight or premature baby.
Stopping this tragedy there are 20 million low birth weight and premature babies born each year is the primary mission of Embrace.
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Forum data showed that the proportion of infants born with low birth weight was 8 percent in 1997, the highest figure in more than 20 years.
Government advice is that pregnant women should be careful about their caffeine intake from all sources because it may effect the birth weight of their baby.
However, previous research has linked low birth weight to an increased risk of attention deficit disorder, as well as physical conditions such as cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.
The program was developed in response to the shocking infant mortality statistics in the United States, as well as to prevent low birth weight and premature babies.
Lead researcher Louise Bamfield conceded that medical advances meant more low birth weight babies were now surviving, but she said social deprivation and low income were significant factors.
Experts hope to reduce this figure to 15% by 2010 as women who smoke while pregnant are three times more likely to have a low birth weight baby.
It is also possible that low birth weight is indicative of harsh living conditions, such as poverty, which may make a child experiencing them more likely to be depressed.
Low-birth weight is linked to an increased risk death and disability, and a range of long-term health problems, such as diabetes, heart disease, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and depression.
The study, from University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), followed 40 newborn babies who had lost at least 5% of their birth weight by the time they were 36 hours old.
Alternatively, a depressed mother may be more likely to produce a child who is prone to depression - and to have a low birth weight baby because they may be more likely to smoke and drink during pregnancy.
Some 20 million low-birth-weight babies are born every year mostly in the developing world and nearly 4 million die within the first month of life.
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Mothers of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin had a high risk of having low birth-weight babies - their babies are on average 300g lighter than those of white mothers.
The overweight women in the study who lost weight post-birth substantially lowered their risk of gestational diabetes compared with those who maintained their weight.
The five ranged in weight at birth from 1 pound, 12 ounces to 2 pounds, 11 ounces and in length from 12.5 inches to 15.5 inches.
The former were born after a gestation period of 27 weeks on average, compared with 31 weeks, and their average weight at birth was 820g, compared with 1415g.
Dr Linne said many women expected to lose their excess weight after giving birth, particularly as a result of breastfeeding.
It has to become more competitive, better integrate immigrants, reform welfare, reverse plummeting birth rates and learn to punch its weight on the world stage.
At the time the FDA said the drug resulted in "significant" weight loss but the agency said it was concerned about a possible risk of birth defects and an unknown impact on the heart.
Compared with women of similar height who maintain their weight, a 5-foot-4 woman who gains roughly 12 to 17 pounds after giving birth more than doubles her odds of developing diabetes during her second pregnancy, the study found.
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