PREVALENCE OF RESPIRATORY INFECTION AND FEEDING CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN UNTIL THE SIXTH MONTH OF LIFE IN RIO GRANDE/RS In developing countries, the respiratory infections are responsible for a third of the deaths and for the half of...
morePREVALENCE OF RESPIRATORY INFECTION AND FEEDING CHARACTERISTICS OF CHILDREN UNTIL THE SIXTH MONTH OF LIFE IN RIO GRANDE/RS
In developing countries, the respiratory infections are responsible for a third of the deaths and for the half of hospitalizations in under five children, being constituted in a serious problem of public health. A premature introduction of other feed that not the maternal milk, besides predisposing the babies to a higher contact with pathogenic agents, it can expose the organism to foods that it is still not capable to metabolize. The propose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of respiratory infection and the main characteristics of feeding pattern until the sixth month of life, in under 5 children, analyzed in 1995 and 2004, in Rio Grande/RS, Southern Brazil. There were analyzed two cross sectional studies that evaluated 395 children, in 1995 and 385 children, in 2004. The percentile of losses was 2.1% and 4.4%, in 1995 and 2004, respectively. The prevalences of respiratory infection were 34.9% (1995) and 28.3% (2004). There was a significant increase in the proportion of children with respiratory infection between 0 and 6 months of life (1995: 6.5%; 2004:11.0%), from families with low income (1995: 26.1%; 2004: 47.7%), deficit hight/age (1995: 6.5%; 2004: 26.6%). The prevalence of exclusive breast-feeding untill sixth month of life, in children who had respiratory infection, was 1.5% and 4.6%, in 1995 and 2004, respectively. The proportions of children breastfeeded predominantly (1995: 5.8%; 2004: 14.7%) and partially (1995: 8.9%; 2004: 22.0%) until the six months, increased significantly (p <0.05). However, the type of milk feeding most prevalent n the sixth month of life was the mixed predominant (1995: 63.8%; 2004: 54.1%). Therefore, in despite of having had an increase in breastfeeded children's proportions, these values are very on this side of the objectives proposed by the World Organization of Health. Besides, the introduction of other liquids and solid foods before the sixth month of life, is still very high in children from this city. However, they are other necessary studies focused in the alimentary risk factors related to the occurrence of respiratory diseases in under five, so that it will be albe to discover what factors are acting in order to predispose these children to develop these pathologies.
Keywords: respiratory infection, breastfeeding, complementary feeding, children