Thursday briefing: What new evidence tells us about the reality of racial discrimination in maternity care

Women from minority backgrounds report not being listened to when they raise concerns during pregnancy.
Photograph: Andriy Popov/Alamy

Good morning. Researchers have long known that women in the UK experience very different birth outcomes depending on their ethnicity, income and physical condition. Black women, for example, are still about 2.7 times more likely to die during pregnancy or shortly after giving birth than white women.

As the Guardian reported on Wednesday, a new study suggests one possible explanation: that the cumulative physiological impact of stress caused by racism and inequality may itself affect pregnancy outcomes.