Kent Thornburg

Pregnant While Black

Ethics, Culture & Social Issues

“In her engaging book, Pregnant While Black, the brilliant obstetrician, Dr. Monique Rainford, shows that American Black women of African descent have higher risks of adverse pregnancy outcomes than other women. Her powerful evidence shows that disheartening disparities suffered by Black pregnant women arise not so much from genetic inheritance but more from epigenetic predispositions as the result of generations of racism, inadequate diets, and chronic environmental stress. Nevertheless, Rainford offers encouraging hope for reversing these disparities over the next generation.”