View report page

101
Maternal Health General health.
Previous miscarriages.
Health during pregnancy.
Feeding Nature of feeding.
Continuity of methods of feeding.
Age of weaning.
Quantity and quality of food given.
Gain in weight.
Maternal Care Previous deaths of children.
Advice sought from clinics or doctors.
Capacity for looking after children and following advice.
Size of Family No. of Miscarriages.
„ ,, Still births.
,, ,, Children born alive.
„ ,, Previous deaths.
,, ,, Children living.
Spacing of Children in
Family.
Age of Parents
Proximity of Open Spaces
Neo-natal Deaths Age of infant in days.
Summary of Conclusions and Recommendations.
"Bronchitis" deaths are in the main not due to environment, but to avitamosis caused by faulty feeding
of mother and/or baby.
In many cases breast-feeding does not supply the infant with sufficient vitamins to keep it healthy.
Similarly, in feeding with modified cow's milk the infant may not receive sufficient vitamins in its food.
Most of the "Marasmus" cases and some of the "Enteritis" and "Prematurity" cases occur where the
environment is bad, and it seems likely that poor stock is a factor in these cases as well as poverty.
Where "Enteritis" cases occur in good environment, poor feeding is the most likely cause of the illness.
"Prematurity" cases are not, as a rule, due to bad environment.
Neo-natal deaths are not due to environment, but in many cases to an innate lack of vitality in the infant.
Avitamosis is suggested as the cause of this.
Death of a legitimate infant is seldom due to the mother working while pregnant.
Carelessness of some residents and shop keepers in allowing the streets to become foul with domestic refuse
from houses and waste matter from shops may contribute to the causation of dirt " diseases, and greater care
on the part of residents and shop keepers themselves would secure much improvement.
The Committee suggest that it would be possible to make use of the facilities afforded by the local Clinics
to improve the health of these infants, and also to confirm, if possible, the findings of this Report, in the following
manner:—
At an Ante-natal Clinic the dietary of a group of pregnant mothers might be supervised as suggested,
and any results on the health of infants noted.
At an Infant Welfare Centre or Clinic a group of normal breast-fed babies might have their food
supplemented as suggested, and their health compared with that of a similar group of babies who had nothing
but breast feeding.
Similar comparisons might be made between two groups of normal bottle-fed babies.
The effects of giving vitamin preparations might be noted also in three groups of cases which had
deviated from the normal:—
(a) Broncho-pneumonia cases.
(b) Marasmus and Enteritis cases.
(e) Cases with small weekly gain in weight.
Investigation of the environment of one or two groups of healthy infants attending the Clinics might
be carried out to provide normal figures as a "control" for the data of unhealthy babies obtained in any
similar investigation in the future. (The information required might be obtained from the groups already
under observation.)
The deaths of infants in Kensington should be investigated for a further period of 12 months, if possible
in conjunction with investigations on parallel lines in the neighbouring boroughs, and a further Report issued.
This investigation might best be conducted by a series of meetings at short intervals, at which any deaths
occurring since the previous meeting might be gone into while full particulars of the case were still available.
(Signed) H. E. BARRETT.
A. KEITH GIBSON.
ELEANOR M. REECE.
This Report is issued with the approval of the North Kensington Medical Society.