Copyright © The Author(s). All Rights Reserved © GLOBAL PUBLICATION HOUSE |Int. Journal of Bio. & Medic. Science | SOLOMON M. UVOH, ARTHUR N. CHUEMERE, ONYEBUCHI OBIA Department of Human Physiology, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Health Sciences University of port Harcourt, Rivers State Nigeria IMPACT OF GAS FLARES ON ANTHROPOMETRIC INDICES OF PREGNANT AND NON PREGNANT WOMEN IN SELECTED GAS FLARING COMMUNITIES IN BAYELSA STATE NIGERIA Corresponding author: *SOLOMON M. UVOH Email : solomonu31@gmail.com A B S T R A C T This study determined the blood pressures (mmHg), weight (kg),height (m),and body mass index (kg/m²) using the square of the height to divide the body weight of the apparently healthy pregnant women between the ages of eighteen to fifty years in some gas flaring communities in Bayelsa state Nigeria. Two hundred apparently healthy pregnant women and one hundred non-pregnant women were randomly selected as participants for this study using weight height, palpatory and auscultatory methods. The results from this study indicate a significant increase (0.00) in the weight and body mass index in the non- pregnant (66.95kg, 25.9kg/m²) and (67.25kg, 26.28kg/m²) among pregnant group. A significant (0.00) increase in the body mass index and weight of the pregnant group according to their trimesters of pregnancy was a clear indication of maternal blood volume and tissue growth during pregnancy. There was a decrease in the mean values of the non-pregnant and pregnant group weight and body mass index with regards to duration of exposure to gas flares in Bayelsa state. The results also indicate decreased height among the pregnant exposed to gas flares over a long period of time compared with short duration of exposure. The result from this study has shown that gas flares affect height, weight, and body mass index of both non pregnant and pregnant women in Bayelsa state. K E Y W O R D S Body mass index, weight, height, gas flares, Anthropometric Manuscript ID: #0494 Vol. 04 Issue 09 Sept - 2021 Page 15 of 21 This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. p-ISSN 2795-3222 e-ISSN 2795-3248 Doi: https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6778421