Home visits by nurses to underprivileged mothers have been shown to notably decrease hypertension rates in the mothers and reduce the risk of obesity in their daughters, according to a recent reanalysis of health data conducted by a UCL-led research team.
Home nurse visits help reduce risk of obesity in daughters
In the study “Early Home-Visits and Health Outcomes in Low-Income Mothers and Offspring: 18-Year Follow-Up of a Randomized Trial” published in JAMA Network Open, researchers reanalyzed data from the Nurse-Family Partnership trial conducted from 1990 to 1994. The results indicate that prenatal and infancy nurse home visits led to a 55% reduction in the risk of daughters being obese and an 81% reduction in the likelihood of severe obesity in adolescence. Additionally, mothers of girls who received these home visits experienced a 39% decrease in Stage 1 hypertension and an 88% decrease in Stage 2 hypertension.
Professor Gabriella Conti from UCL Economics emphasizes the significant impact of nurse visits as a potent tool for improving lives. Conti said that the data presented underscores the positive effects of public programs, such as nurse visits, on the long-term health of both children born into challenging circumstances and their mothers.
Adverse childhood experience and poverty affect child health
According to studies poverty and adverse childhood experiences can have detrimental effects on the long-term health of a child, heightening risk of chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, kidney failure, and heart disease, ultimately leading to premature death.
The research on nurse home visits originated in New York during the 1970s, aiming to assess the effectiveness of such visits for mothers experiencing significant social challenges. The goal was to enhance maternal health and wellbeing, pregnancy outcomes, and child health and development. This community health initiative, offering nurse home visits to first-time mothers, gained widespread adoption throughout the United States and internationally.
It is important to note that the Nurse-Family Partnership program has shown beneficial outcomes for first-time parents including promoting healthier pregnancies and deliveries, enhancing child health and development, and boosting the economic self-sufficiency of families.
