Retrospective Reports of Pregnancy Wantedness and Child Well-Being in the United States

Abstract

Survey estimates indicate that about one half of all U.S. pregnancies that result in birth are reported as unwanted or mistimed. As a result, there is substantial interest in the association between pregnancy wantedness and infant and child well-being. The objective of this study is to expand our knowledge of the effects of pregnancy wantedness on several measures of child well-being using the National Maternal and Infant Health Survey-Longitudinal Follow-up data. The results indicate that pregnancies retrospectively classified as unwanted or mistimed are associated with overall worse measures of child well-being across all three out come measures that are employed. These associations are generally weakened, but not eliminated, with controls for a number of biologic and social risk factor control variables. Program interventions that alleviate some of the negative circumstances associated with unwanted and mistimed pregnancies may work to reduce the health and developmental disadvantages experienced by these children.