AVERAGE WEIGHT OF NEWBORN INFANTS IN RECENT YEARS AS AFFECTAD BY THE WAR CONDITIONS IN NAGANO

Abstract

The author treated the material recorded and kept by Mrs. Koto Mitsumizu of Mitsumizu Maternity Nursing Home in the town of Nagano arid made clear the following points concerning the average weight of newborn infants in Nagano district:
In pre-war period (1937-1940) averages of 182 males and 133 females were 3118 g. and 3009g. respectively, which values are within normal limits for Japanese as well as European newborn infants.
From 1943 to 1946, when the difficulty to obtain food and other conditions of living were most deplorable, the average weight of the newborn infants was 3022 g. with reduction of 96 g. from the normal in male and 2859g., lighter by 150g. than the normal average in female. The worst period was during 1944 to 1945 incl., as is shown in Fig. 1, where the upper curve refers to the male and the lower the female. Horizontal straight lines give the levels of the averages for normal period. The scale of the abscissae is graduated by the year of ShOwa, the 20th year of Showa corresponding to 1945 A. D.