Production and reproduction: Women and breastfeeding: Some Nigerian examples

Breastfeeding is of crucial importance in the developing world, not only to the health of the mother and her infant, but to the community in general. The importance of breastfeeding of infants lies not only in its nutritional and hygienic properties, but also because of its immunological effects and its influence in the control of fertility. The literature review is combined with a discussion of aspects of research undertaken by the authors under the headings of length of breastfeeding, bottlefeeding and breastfeeding and fertility. Most of the examples come from Nigeria, but the problems discussed are common to much of the developing world. Under a discussion of social and policy implications, the need for governments in the developing countries to adopt the recent World Health Organisation's code of practice to curtail the sale of artificial infant milks, is stressed. It is suggested that health agencies in countries like Nigeria should go to the rural areas now, to instruct the women and men in the dangers of bottle feeding and the benefits of breastfeeding, before the ‘modernisation’ of infant feeding, so evident in the towns, spreads to the rural areas.     

Birthplace and Attendants:

In October of 1977 an article entitled "Birthplace Alternatives" appeared in the Oregon State Health Bulletin. This article presented a narrative based on facts taken from the data on birth certificates of all births occurring outside of a hospital in the State of Oregon in 1976. Tabulations were compiled to show where the infants were being born, who was delivering them, the educational level of the parents, and the prenatal care given. Insofar as was possible-from complications listed on the birth certificates, information from matched infant death reports, and full term fetal death reports-the outcome of these deliveries was explored. Due to the tremendous response to that article, this update of 1977 data on out-of-hospital births was prepared.     

Women and Poverty:

In the current debate about causes and cures for poverty, much attention is given to women. Women are more likely than men to be poor, and once impoverished, to remain poor for longer periods of time than do man. In addition, a much greater responsibility for raising the next generation of adults belongs to poor women than to poor men. No individual policy response will alleviate poverty among women. Rather, a multifaceted policy response that recognizes the wide diversity of their situation is necessary. This paper describes the diversity among poor women and suggests a series of appropriate policies.     

Parenting and Communication:

No abstract available for this article.