LOS ANGELES COUNTY : Drive Seeks to Improve Health During Pregnancy

Despite improvements in reducing infant mortality in Los Angeles County, far too many babies are born underweight and sickly, state Health Director Molly Joel Coye said Thursday in announcing an expanded media campaign to reach pregnant women with messages on prenatal care.

The second phase of the BabyCal Outreach Campaign, a $9-million, three-year effort to reduce infant mortality and low birth weight, will advise women on the importance of a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy and the consequences of substance abuse on infants. Drug, alcohol and tobacco use are a major cause of low birth weight. Low birth weight babies are 40 times more likely to die before their first birthday.

“Research shows that as many as 15% of all live births in California involve exposure to drugs or alcohol or both, and that large numbers of women are smoking throughout their pregnancies,” Coye said. “Through BabyCal, we will continue to reach out to as many of these women as we can with important preventive care messages.”