Infant feeding practices and infant mortality in England, 1900–1919

Abstract

Studies of infant mortality in both historical and modern populations from around the world have shown that the most important single factor affecting the infant mortality rate (IMR) is the way in which babies are fed. When methods of infant feeding are unsatisfactory or dangerous, mortality is high; when improvements are made in feeding practices, mortality falls, often dramatically, in a short period of time. The degree to which changes in infant feeding alone can affect IMRs depends on other factors in the population concerned, primarily the health and nutritional status of the mother; sanitary conditions both within the household and in the surrounding environment; levels of endemic and epidemic diseases; the degree of wealth, education and sophistication of the population; and, if women are employed outside the home, the provision made for infant feeding and care by the child's family and by society.This article examines infant feeding practices in England during the first two decades of the twentieth century, arguably the most important 20 years in the fall in that nation's IMR between 1870 and 1920. The 1900s and 1910s saw many major changes in the ways in which infants were fed in all sections of society. Instigated by government, local Medical Officers of Health and their staff and voluntary organizations, the effect of the infant welfare movement in England in this period was that infants and their mothers were significantly better fed, cared for and able to resist disease in 1919 than in 1900.

Heat Waves and Cold Spells and their Effect on Mortality: an Analysis of Micro-data for the Netherlands in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

“…The quality of foods such as milk and bread porridge deteriorated at high temperatures; the quality of water, used to dilute milk or prepare other foods, was extremely bad as well during periods of heat and drought; and purity of feeding bottles and teats could not be guaranteed. In poor homes there was no cool place to keep either condensed or fresh milk in the summer months (Fildes, 1998). Over time, however, infants became less and less sensitive to temperature fluctuations: increased frequency and duration of breast-feeding, increased use of proprietary artificial food, improvements in the quality of feeding bottles and of drinking water and milk, etc.…”

150 Years of temperature-related excess mortality in the Netherlands

“…These diseases affected children when they had lost the protection of the mother's milk and were susceptible to contamination through the ingestion of infected food and water (Oris, Derosas, and Breschi 2004). The risks of contaminated milk or water were much higher when temperatures were high (Fildes 1998). …”

Fertility decline and the heights of children in Britain, 1886–1938

“…Specific improvements identified in the literature include better quality milk supplies, better knowledge of hygiene and feeding methods (particularly bottle feeding) as well as the growing importance of local health services in the form of midwives and health visitors, and not least of all the health of the mothers themselves (Dyehouse, 1978;Fildes 1998;Millward and Bell, 2001). These advances are likely to have been all the more effective when taken in conjunction with smaller families.…”