Infant Mortality in African American Group Essay

Infant Mortality in African American Group - Essay Example This finding means that the effect of prenatal care against no prenatal care on infant mortality rates within the first year of life is not different in African American women who have delivered live infants (Minnesota Department of Health, 2013).A study done by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2013) revealed that infant mortality has reduced in the United States because of the decline in neonatal deaths associated with low birth weight. The report states that prenatal smoking contributes to low birth weight that in turn leads to increased infant mortality. No matter the group involved, the report observes that intensive prenatal care helps to reduce infant mortality rates (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013).Abusalah (2012) agrees with the above study by stating that low birth weight is a critical factor related to infant mortality rates. Pollution from things such as smoking of various tobacco products and exposure to wood fuel smoke causes many women to gi ve birth to low weight infants whose life is at risk especially during their first year of life. As such, Abusalah (2012) states, â€Å"Health professionals who provide prenatal care have a critical role to play in raising awareness of harms from environmental smoke exposure, especially in low income communities† (Abusalah, 2012).   This shows that prenatal care goes a long way in helping reduce infant mortality. Therefore, African American mothers who are provided with better prenatal care could experience lower infant mortality.