Source: The 19th News

Excerpt:

All three of Ashley Gaignard’s children were born preterm and at low birth weights. It was a fact that Gaignard didn’t think about much at the time — her children are now in their twenties — because it felt so common among her friends and family. 

“I thought that maybe because I was tiny and petite that I would have small babies,” she said. 

But she did notice a pattern: Her mom had small babies, so did her siblings. People in her family also had difficult pregnancies, with one of her siblings experiencing a miscarriage and another experiencing life-threatening complications during her labor.  

While genetics could play a role, there was another possibility that Gaignard hadn’t considered: her environment. 

Read more: Louisiana’s toxic air is linked to low-weight and pre-term births