Environment International (Dec 2022)
Exposure to natural environments during pregnancy and birth outcomes in 11 European birth cohorts
- Maria Torres Toda,
- Demetris Avraam,
- Timothy James Cadman,
- Serena Fossati,
- Montserrat de Castro,
- Audrius Dedele,
- Geoffrey Donovan,
- Ahmed Elhakeem,
- Marisa Estarlich,
- Amanda Fernandes,
- Romy Gonçalves,
- Regina Grazuleviciene,
- Jennifer R. Harris,
- Margreet W Harskamp-van Ginkel,
- Barbara Heude,
- Jesús Ibarluzea,
- Carmen Iñiguez,
- Vincent WV Jaddoe,
- Deborah Lawlor,
- Aitana Lertxundi,
- Johanna Lepeule,
- Rosemary McEachan,
- Giovenale Moirano,
- Johanna LT Nader,
- Anne-Marie Nybo Andersen,
- Marie Pedersen,
- Costanza Pizzi,
- Theano Roumeliotaki,
- Susana Santos,
- Jordi Sunyer,
- Tiffany Yang,
- Marina Vafeiadi,
- Tanja GM Vrijkotte,
- Mark Nieuwenhuijsen,
- Martine Vrijheid,
- Maria Foraster,
- Payam Dadvand
Affiliations
- Maria Torres Toda
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain
- Demetris Avraam
- Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle, UK; Section of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Timothy James Cadman
- Section of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
- Serena Fossati
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain
- Montserrat de Castro
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain
- Audrius Dedele
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Vytautas Magnus University, 53361 Akademija, Lithuania
- Geoffrey Donovan
- Center for Public Health Research, Massey University-Wellington Campus, PO Box 756, Wellington 6140, New Zealand; USDA Forest Service, PNW Research Station, 620 SW Main, Suite 502, Portland, OR 97205, USA
- Ahmed Elhakeem
- Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK; Population Health Science, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, UK
- Marisa Estarlich
- Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain; Epidemiology and Environmental Health Joint Research Unit, Foundation for the Promotion of Health and Biomedical Research in the Valencian Region, FISABIO-Public Health, FISABIO-Universitat Jaume I-Universitat de València, Av. Catalunya 21, 46020, Valencia, Spain; Nursing School, Universitat de València, C/Menendez y Pelayo, s/n, 46010, Valencia, Spain
- Amanda Fernandes
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain
- Romy Gonçalves
- The Generation R Study Group (NA-2915), Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Centre Rotterdam, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
- Regina Grazuleviciene
- Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Vytautas Magnus University, 53361 Akademija, Lithuania
- Jennifer R. Harris
- Center for Fertility and Health, The Nowegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway
- Margreet W Harskamp-van Ginkel
- Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, Department of Public and Occupational Health, Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Meibergdreef 9, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Barbara Heude
- Université de Paris Cité, Inserm, INRAE, Centre of Research in Epidemiology and StatisticS (CRESS), F-75004 Paris, France
- Jesús Ibarluzea
- Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain; Biodonostia Health Research Institute, Environmental Epidemiology and Child Development Group, 20014, San Sebastian, Spain; Ministry of Health of the Basque Government, Sub-Directorate for Public Health and Addictions of Gipuzkoa, 20013, San Sebastian, Spain; Faculty of Psychology of the University of the Basque Country, 20018, San Sebastian, Spain
- Carmen Iñiguez
- Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain; Epidemiology and Environmental Health Joint Research Unit, Foundation for the Promotion of Health and Biomedical Research in the Valencian Region, FISABIO-Public Health, FISABIO-Universitat Jaume I-Universitat de València, Av. Catalunya 21, 46020, Valencia, Spain; Department of Statistics and Operational Research, Universitat de València, Dr. Moliner, 50 46100, Valencia, Spain
- Vincent WV Jaddoe
- The Generation R Study Group (NA-2915), Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Pediatrics, Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, the Netherlands
- Deborah Lawlor
- Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit at the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK; Population Health Science, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, UK
- Aitana Lertxundi
- Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain; Biodonostia Health Research Institute, Environmental Epidemiology and Child Development Group, 20014, San Sebastian, Spain; Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), 48940, Leioa, Spain
- Johanna Lepeule
- Université Grenoble Alpes, Institut Albert Bonniot, équipe d’épidémiologie environnementale appliquée à la reproduction et la santé respiratoire, F-38000 Grenoble, France; Inserm, Institut Albert Bonniot, équipe d’épidémiologie environnementale appliquée à la reproduction et la santé respiratoire, F-38000 Grenoble, France
- Rosemary McEachan
- Bradford Institute for Health Research, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Bradford, UK
- Giovenale Moirano
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Turin, CPO-Piemonte, Turin, Italy
- Johanna LT Nader
- Department of Genetics and Bioinformatics, Division of Health Data and Digitalisation, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway
- Anne-Marie Nybo Andersen
- Section of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Marie Pedersen
- Section of Epidemiology, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Costanza Pizzi
- Department of Medical Sciences, University of Turin, CPO-Piemonte, Turin, Italy
- Theano Roumeliotaki
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Department of Social Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Crete, Greece
- Susana Santos
- The Generation R Study Group (NA-2915), Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Pediatrics, Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, the Netherlands
- Jordi Sunyer
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain
- Tiffany Yang
- Bradford Institute for Health Research, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Bradford, UK
- Marina Vafeiadi
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Department of Social Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Crete, Greece
- Tanja GM Vrijkotte
- Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, Department of Public and Occupational Health, Amsterdam Public Health research institute, Meibergdreef 9, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Mark Nieuwenhuijsen
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain
- Martine Vrijheid
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain
- Maria Foraster
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain
- Payam Dadvand
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Barcelona, Spain; Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5. Pabellón 11, 28029, Madrid, Spain; Corresponding author.
- Journal volume & issue
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Vol. 170
p. 107648
Abstract
Research suggests that maternal exposure to natural environments (i.e., green and blue spaces) promotes healthy fetal growth. However, the available evidence is heterogeneous across regions, with very few studies on the effects of blue spaces. This study evaluated associations between maternal exposure to natural environments and birth outcomes in 11 birth cohorts across nine European countries. This study, part of the LifeCycle project, was based on a total sample size of 69,683 newborns with harmonised data. For each participant, we calculated seven indicators of residential exposure to natural environments: surrounding greenspace in 100m, 300m, and 500m using Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) buffers, distance to the nearest green space, accessibility to green space, distance to the nearest blue space, and accessibility to blue space. Measures of birth weight and small for gestational age (SGA) were extracted from hospital records. We used pooled linear and logistic regression models to estimate associations between exposure to the natural environment and birth outcomes, controlling for the relevant covariates. We evaluated the potential effect modification by socioeconomic status (SES) and region of Europe and the influence of ambient air pollution on the associations. In the pooled analyses, residential surrounding greenspace in 100m, 300m, and 500m buffer was associated with increased birth weight and lower odds for SGA. Higher residential distance to green space was associated with lower birth weight and higher odds for SGA. We observed close to null associations for accessibility to green space and exposure to blue space. We found stronger estimated magnitudes for those participants with lower educational levels, from more deprived areas, and living in the northern European region. Our associations did not change notably after adjustment for air pollution. These findings may support implementing policies to promote natural environments in our cities, starting in more deprived areas.
