Breastfeeding and the Baby Friendly Hospitals Initiative (BFHI): organization, response and outcome in Sweden and other countries.

Unlabelled: The Baby Friendly Hospitals Initiative (BFHI), organized as a global campaign by UNICEF and focusing mainly on the breastfeeding routines, attitudes and knowledge among staff and mothers at maternity centres, was introduced in Sweden in 1993. Four years later, all of the then 65 maternity centres had been designated "baby friendly" (BF). Concomitant with that, the 6-mo breastfeeding rate increased from about 50% to 73% on a national basis, presumably resulting from adherence to the "10 steps" and the development of a favourable breastfeeding climate.

The world's children--the children's world. The Rosen von Rosenstein award.

I feel very honoured to have been selected for the Nils Rosén von Rosenstein award. My thanks are due to the Swedish Paediatric Society.

Why women don't breastfeed: a national survey.

Unlabelled: Breastfeeding is a behaviour that is influenced by many complex factors and confounders. Various social and psychological factors may thus be missed in studies of the prevalence and duration of breastfeeding. The prevalence of breastfeeding is extremely high in the rich Scandinavian countries where the mothers are given paid maternity leave for at least one year.

Growth under privileged conditions of healthy Swedish infants exclusively breastfed from birth to 4-6 months: a longitudinal prospective study based on daily records of feeding.

Aim: In most studies the methodology used to study growth in relation to breastfeeding patterns cannot ensure that exclusive breastfeeding has in fact occurred since birth. The aim of this study was to investigate the growth of healthy infants in Sweden in whom exclusive breastfeeding for the first 4-6 mo was ascertained through daily feeding records and to compare the results with the World Health Organization (WHO) "12-month breastfed pooled data set" and the Euro-Growth references for exclusively breastfed infants, as well as with the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS)/WHO reference.

Methods: 147 exclusively breastfed infants and 325 non-exclusively breastfed Swedish infants, with a birthweight of > or = 3 kg, were included.

Circumcision in boys: time for doctors to reconsider.

The Convention of the Rights of the Child from 1989 states in Article 19 that States "shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violation, injury or abuse...

Introduction of solids and formula to breastfed infants: a longitudinal prospective study in Uppsala, Sweden.

Unlabelled: The introduction of solids and formula was studied among 506 breastfed infants in Uppsala, Sweden, based on daily recordings during the first year. The mothers had previously breastfed at least 1 infant for at least 4 mo. Thirty-four per cent of the infants were introduced to solids before the age of 4 mo (4-6 mo is recommended in Sweden).

Infant feeding practices during the first six months of life in a rural area in Tanzania.

Objective: To assess breastfeeding practices in infants aged 0-6 months, focussing particularly on beliefs, knowledge and practices affecting exclusive breastfeeding.

Design: A house-to-house survey with individual interviews using a structured questionnaire, key informants interviews and focus group discussions.

Participants: One hundred and seven mothers were interviewed, nearly all of those living in Nkinga community with infants less than seven months old.

Solids and formula: association with pattern and duration of breastfeeding.

Objectives: To study changes in pattern and duration of breastfeeding associated with the introduction of solids and formula.

Study Design: Descriptive longitudinal, prospective study.

Setting: The participants were recruited from the maternity ward in the University Hospital in Uppsala, Sweden, between May 1989 and December 1992.