Data for the study of the prenatal period in Mexico, from physical anthropology

Abstract

Maternal conditions and environment in which pregnancy occurs are important for the growth and development of the product and influence the expression of growth potential and health status in postnatal life. The purpose of this paper is a physical anthropology approach of the study of intrauterine growth. We part from the proposal of fetal programming, which examines the origin of certain diseases from the prenatal period, and its influence on the functioning of certain organs or systems as cause of some chronic diseases later in life. The knowledge of the conditions which occur in growth and maturation processes during ontogeny, is essential to understand the nature of heritage-environment interactions in building of humans.