Author(s) :

Donayoung Kim.

Volume/Issue :

Abstract :

This paper examines how environmental exposure shapes maternal mental health and pregnancy outcomes in low-resource communities through both biological and cultural pathways. Drawing on biocultural anthropology, environmental justice scholarship, and clinical research on pregnancy outcomes, it argues that pollution is not only a toxic exposure but also a structural condition that produces unequal health risks. Indoor and outdoor pollutants—including household emissions, traffic-related air pollution (notably fine particulate matter, PM2.5), and industrial contaminants—are associated with inflammation, oxidative stress, placental dysfunction, hypertensive disorders, and adverse birth outcomes. At the same time, pollution operates as a psychosocial stressor: when pregnant women recognize environmental danger but lack the resources to reduce exposure, this mismatch can intensify anxiety, hypervigilance, and chronic stress. The paper further explores how cultural interpretations of illness shape how mothers understand risk, cope with uncertainty, and respond to symptoms. By integrating structural violence with Kleinman’s disease–illness framework, this study highlights how environmental injustice and lived meaning combine to influence maternal well-being. The result is a biocultural account of pregnancy that links social inequality, embodied stress, and reproductive health.