Structural Racism and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes Through the Lens of the Maternal Microbiome.

Publication/Presentation Date

10-1-2023

Abstract

Microbiome science offers a glimpse into personalized medicine by characterizing health and disease states according to an individual's microbial signatures. Without a critical examination of the use of race as a variable, microbiome studies may be susceptible to the same pitfalls as other areas of science grounded in racist biology. We will examine the use of race as a biological variable in pregnancy-related microbiome research. Emerging data from studies that investigate the intestinal microbiome in pregnancy suggest strong influence of a poor diet on adverse pregnancy outcomes. Differences in the vaginal microbiome implicated in adverse pregnancy outcomes are frequently attributed to race. We review evidence that links systemic racism to pregnancy health outcome differences with a focus on the vaginal and intestinal microbiomes as well as diet. We also review how structural racism ultimately contributes to inequitable access to healthy food and higher risk environmental exposures among pregnant people of lower socioeconomic status and exacerbates common pregnancy comorbidities.

Volume

142

Issue

4

First Page

911

Last Page

919

ISSN

1873-233X

Disciplines

Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Health and Medical Administration | Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods

PubMedID

37678901

Department(s)

Administration and Leadership

Document Type

Article

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