Determining Gentrification’s Relationship to Birth Outcomes in Metropolitan California

Abstract

There is inconsistent evidence whether gentrification, the increase of affluent residents moving into low-income neighborhoods, is detrimental to health. To date, there is no systematic evidence on how gentrification may matter for a range of birth outcomes across cities with varying characteristics. We utilize California’s Birth Cohort File (2009–2012), decennial census data, and the American Community Survey (2008–2012) to investigate the relationship of gentrification to outcomes of preterm birth, low birth weight, and small for gestational age across California. We find that socioeconomic gentrification is uniformly associated with better birth outcomes. Notably, however, we find that only places specifically experiencing increases in non-White gentrification had this positive impact. These associations vary somewhat by maternal characteristics and by type of gentrification measure utilized; discrepancies between alternative measurement strategies are explored. This study provides evidence that socioeconomic gentrification is positively related to birth outcomes and that the race-ethnic character of gentrification matters, emphasizing the continued need to examine how gentrification may impact a range of health and social outcomes.