London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Bethnal Green 1909

Report on the sanitary condition and vital statistics during the year 1909 together with the report of the Chief Sanitary Inspector

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The partly hand fed child had cows' milk, and was
being fed with a feeding bottle which had a rubber
tube. The mother did not appear to be a particularly
clean or careful person, but she did appear to love her
baby, and realized the dangers of that method of feeding
when they were pointed out to her. She promised
to obtain a boat-shaped bottle, and to be very careful
about its cleanliness. Unfortunately, however, the
householder unexpectedly moved, and the mother had
to go too, and could not afterwards be traced.
Feeding bottles with rubber tubes were in use for
four of the hand fed babies. In each case the mother
promised to procure others of an improved shape, and
two actually did so. One baby died, and the other
was taken by its mother into the Workhouse, and thus
lost sight of.
One of our hand fed infants has been a most interesting
case. The child was visited at the end of
June last, and found to be almost dying. The mother
had been visited before, for the two children born previously
to this one had died—"wasting." This time,
the mother went into the London Hospital for her
confinement; and as she was so starved she was not
allowed to attempt breast feeding. After my visit
milk was obtained for this baby, and in three days the
child was perceptibly filling out. Through the generosity
of the stall milk was allowed free thence forward
till the child was 10 months old, and she grew —though
she has never reached the proper standard either of
size or weight for her age. Early in October she had
a slight attack of Diarrhoea and lost weight. It was