[Identification of the groups most vulnerable to infant malnutrition through the measuring of poverty level]. / Identificação de grupos mais vulneráveis à desnutrição infantil pela medição do nível de pobreza.

OBJECTIVE: To test an instrument measuring the socioeconomic level, specially designed for low income urban populations, to be used in the identification of groups more vulnerable to infant malnutrition. POPULATION AND METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study, with a sample of 477 children aged 12 to 59 months old living in low income census sectors at "Vila Grande Cruzeiro", in Porto Alegre, RS. The children were submitted to anthropometric evaluation and their families were stratified according to socioeconomic level measured through an instrument developed in Chile for urban poor populations and adapted to local conditions. Children with weight/age, height/age and/or weight/height below - 2 standard deviation from the median of the reference population (NCHS) were considered malnourished. RESULTS: The children from families belonging to the lowest quartile in the socioeconomic classification had a 3.4 times higher chance of having low weight for age, a 2.7 times higher chance of being stunted and a 11.0 times higher chance of presenting low weight for height, controlling for potential confounders. CONCLUSION: The instrument measuring poverty level was useful to identify those children with higher risk for malnutrition.

Breastfeeding pattern in a population with different levels of poverty in Southern Brazil.

A cross-sectional study was conducted on 477 poor children aged 12-59 months in order to investigate their breastfeeding pattern, taking into account the poverty level of their families. Although the population living in extreme poverty had the same pattern of breastfeeding as the rest of the poor population, the former group should still have priority in breastfeeding promotion programs, since they are the population who benefit most with breastfeeding.

Poverty levels and children's health status: study of risk factors in an urban population of low socioeconomic level.

To test the hypothesis that the low socioeconomic population living in shanty towns in Porto Alegre presents different levels of poverty which are reflected on its health status, a cross-sectional study was designed involving 477 families living in Vila Grande Cruzeiro, Porto Alegre, Brazil. The poverty level of the families was measured by using an instrument specifically designed for poor urban populations. Children from families living in extreme poverty (poorest quartile) were found to have higher infant mortality rate, lower birth weights, more hospitalizations, and higher malnutrition rates, in addition to belonging to more numerous families. Thus, the shanty town population of Porto Alegre is not homogeneous, and priority should be given to the more vulnerable subgroups.

[Comparative study of breastfeeding period among children from internal and external day-care centers]. / Estudo comparativo do período de aleitamento materno de crianças em creches internas e externas.

A cross-sectional study was performed with 137 mothers and their children aged 0 - 35.9 months attending day-care centers (DCC) of Parobé and Três Coroas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The study analyzed the duration of breastfeeding among the children according to DCC in the same mothers' working place (internal DCC) or far from mothers' working place (external DCC). The prevalence of breastfeeding at 3, 6 and 12 months was 60%, 26% and 7%, respectively. There was a high statistically significant association between children in internal DCC and breastfeeding over 3 months of life (X(2)= 18.65; p = 0.00001). Mothers with children in internal DCC breastfed more during their working period then mothers with children in external DCC. The closeness of internal DCC to the working place may give the mothers a sense of serenity and safety. There is also more availability of the mothers to breastfeed during working time,this way maintaining the stimulation to breastmilk production and avoiding the introduction of bottle complements.

Risk factors for early termination of breast feeding in Brazil.

A prospective study was undertaken to identify possible factors related to the duration of breast feeding. Two hundred and thirty-eight mothers who had delivered normal single babies with birth weights greater than 2.5 kg and had initiated breast feeding were randomly selected at the maternity hospital, Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre, Brazil, and followed by mail questionnaires until termination of breast feeding, or until the end of the first year. If no reply was received, telephone contact or home visits were made. The group of mothers who stopped breast feeding prior to the end of the third month was compared with those who extended breast feeding beyond three months with respect to socioeconomic, biological, environmental, medical and psychological factors. The variables with a significant coefficient of association with early termination of breast feeding were maternal education, past experience with breast feeding, help of a maid, help with housework provided by a relative, breast feeding orientation during prenatal care and encouragement from the husband. These factors act simultaneously, with interactions among them.