Document Detail

Breast-feeding, birth interval and child mortality in Bangladesh.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  1885627     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
The 1975-76 Bangladesh Fertility Survey data show little evidence that breast-feeding is the intermediate factor through which birth intervals influence child survival in Bangladesh. Preceding birth interval, subsequent pregnancy and breast-feeding duration each have an independent influence on early mortality risk. Within a specific interval the risk of dying decreases with increase in duration of breast-feeding, and also with an increase in the time between the index birth and the next pregnancy. The death of the immediately preceding child in infancy has a significant negative effect on the survival chance of the index child at ages 1-5 months. However, death of the preceding child appears to have a significantly positive effect on the survival chance of the index child between ages 9 months and 5 years; this may be related to competition between siblings.
Between December 1975-march 1976, interviewers gathered data on 6513 ever married women 50 years old for the Bangladesh Fertility Survey. Researchers from the University of Chittagong analyzed the data to learn the extent breast feeding has on birth intervals and the extent both breast feeding and birth intervals have on early mortality. Breast feeding had the strongest effect on reducing mortality for ages 1-4, 5-8, and 9-15 months (p.01), but after 15 months it did not have a significant effect. In fact, it surpassed the influence of timing of the next conception and the preceding birth interval. The detrimental effects of non-breast feeding contributed more to child mortality than did maternal depletion and competition with a sibling. Further, negligible differences occurred in the estimates of next conception with and without controlling breast feeding. These results did not support the theory that breast feeding is the intermediate factor through which birth intervals, especially next conception, influence child survival. Indeed they indicated that preceding birth interval, timing of next conception, and breast feeding each separately influence mortality at an early age. The child mortality risk at ages 1-4 months was lower for the group with an alive preceding sibling than those from the group with a dead preceding sibling. Yet there was no difference in the risk of dying at 5-8 months between these 2 groups. Furthermore, the group with a preceding sibling alive had a higher risk of dying at 9-59 months, than the group with no preceding sibling alive. Therefore competition is the more plausible mechanism of the influence of the survival status of the preceding child on mortality in childhood or late infancy.
A K Majumder
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Journal of biosocial science     Volume:  23     ISSN:  0021-9320     ISO Abbreviation:  J Biosoc Sci     Publication Date:  1991 Jul 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  1991-10-10     Completed Date:  1991-10-10     Revised Date:  2004-11-17    
Medline Journal Info:
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  297-312     Citation Subset:  IM; J    
Department of Statistics, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh.
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MeSH Terms
Birth Intervals*
Breast Feeding*
Child, Preschool
Infant Mortality*
Survival Analysis


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