Health care problems of the young child in a developing ecological context.

PIP: Due to a lack of health statistics regarding both children and women of childbearing age, the health needs of young children in developing nations are essentially unknown. The health of the mother is intimately related to that of the child, since low birth weight caused by intrauterine growth retardation is believed to be of significance for the health and development of the child until age 11. Mothers in rural areas of developing nations may suffer because of poor nutrition, excessive pregnancies at short intervals, prolonged lactation, and heavy farm work. Mothers in the peri-urban sector may be worse off because, being in nuclear families, they lack support from other women during pregnancy and childbirth. In some rural areas in developing nations as many as 1/2 of all deaths occur in infants and children under age 5. Birth weight is the most important single indicator of intrauterine development and needs to be recorded on the birth certificate of every neonate. Low birth weight is of public health significance because it is associated with a high rate of perinatal mortality, morbidity, and subclinical damage and because it tends to result in a pool of children suffering from malnutrition. In infants and young children the risk of death is closely related to the socioeconomic conditions under which they live. The young child is vulnerable to the stresses associated with modifications in the social-cultural environment, and to those related to the changes in family structure that are occurring in many areas of the world. Women in many societies are now taking a more active part in political, economic, and social life. This trend affects child-rearing practices and the roles of parents. Societies are developing a wide range of adaptive measures -- legislative, educational, protective, supportive -- to assist the working mother, but there are complex problems involved in implementing these measures in different cultures.^ieng