Maternal nutrition, fertility, and reproductive performance in the preindustrialized world
Underwood, B.A.
Nutrition Update 2: 207-226
1985
ISSN/ISBN: 0735-4762 PMID: 12285905 Document Number: 425955
Improving the quality of life for poor families in preindustrialized nations depends on successful family planning programs implemented concurrently with successful economic and social development programs. Success on these 2 fronts holds the potential for breaking the link between population growth and malnutrition among the poor within this century. Improvement in reproductive performance of fertile women is pivotal to this success. This chapter discusses issues surrounding the fertility consequences of improved maternal nutrition. Improved nutrition during pregnancy is likely to reduce maternal and perinatal mortality and, during lactation, to favor successful breastfeeding. A discussion is presented as to how, given the deprived conditions, breastfeeding with a timely introduction of other foods, appropriately prepared and fed to complement breast milk, should prolong birth intervals through the reduction of infant mortality and lengthened periods of postpartum infertility. Evidence is also presented which indicates that improved maternal nutrition during the period of lactation may, under some circumstances, hasten the return of postpartum fertility. The modernization and industrialization of currently preindustrialized societies and the increasing economic burden which is being carried by poor families is anticipated to create such circumstances. Appropriate natural and artificial contraceptive strategies which are available to protect poor lactating women who choose to limit their fertility are discussed. A plea is made for strategies to be considered as programs and policies are developed and implemented in the critical years ahead in which there is an effort to meet the WHO goal of "health for all" by the year 2000.