BIBLIOGRAPHIC INPUT SHEET TEMPORARY Patterns of mortality ...

..Chapter XI. Breast Feeding
259
FIG. 130. Breast Feeding for Six Months or weaning process
Longer
usually
of Infants
begins
Dying at
at
6-11
about
Months
6
of Age months of age with the addition of foods
in 13 Latin American Projects.
PER CENT
other than breast milk, and ends about the
0240 60 close of the second year, the mode being
I ' 25.5 months."
C0 M . In the El Salvador project, only 12.0 per
WA . . cent of the infants dying at G-11 months of
M "...age had been breast fed for six month3.
wm macs
However, breast feeding was continued
cU
longer for a higher proportion in the rural
KUWW,.St. I
inmunicipios: 22.0 per cent breast fed for six
WM
OU mm
U0 FAU10
Chile, Sio Paulo, and Recife) the proportion
was less than 10 per cent.
The findings in El Salvador were very
surprising since Gordon et al. (1964) had
reported breast feeding of long duration in
Guatemala, a neighboring country. In their
study of 301 infants in rural Guatemalan
villages, they found that 98.7 per cent were
breast fed from birth. They state: "The
months in contrast to 8.4 per cent in the
city of San Salvador. The lack of mother's
milk
from
without
other
supplementation
sources
of protein
is probably one explanation
for the high death rates fro:i nutritional
deficiency in the project in El Salva­
dor.
The increasing use of hospitals for de­
livery of babies has probably resulted in an
increase in artificial feeding. Also advertisements
of milk substitutes and the intensive
publicity given to them in various sectors
of the population have probably had un­
favorable influences.
AGE AT DEATH
The data on infant's age at death in re- feeding had been started before death for
lation to breast feeding is presented in Table more than 60 per cent in four projects
158. Among those dying in the neonatal (Chaco Province, Bolivia, Cali, and Cartaperiod,
the number breast fed was limited. gena), while in three projects (San Juan
In fact, of those who died in the first seven Province, Medellin, and Kingston-St. Andays
of life, very few (from 0.9 to 17.3 per drew) less than 40 per cent had been breast
cent) received any breast milk (Figure 131). fed (Figure 132).
Of course many infants died in the first day The reasons for not breast feeding as
or days of life in the hospital and so there stated by the mother or other family memwas
no opportunity for breast feeding for ber are given in Table 158. In several promany.
jects the reason given for more than half
Among those who died in the remainder the infants who died at 7-27 days of age was
of the neonatal period (7-27 days) breast that they were in the hospital (55.9 per cent