Sociological Analysis of the Families of Severely Malnourished Children

Abstract

Malnourished infants in Chile receive comprehensive treatment through a Program of Nutritional Rehabilitation Centers, which involves not only the rehabilitation of the infants but also that of their families. This program is planned so that after discharge from the centers, children will continue developing normally within their home environment. A careful analysis of the basic socioeconomical and cultural characteristics of the families in which malnutrition occurs becomes a prerequisite for an accurate diagnosis and treatment of similar groups. The design of this study entails an in depth, descriptive analysis of the families and an investigation of the relationships that may exist among the variables studied. A sample of 42 families of greater Santiago was analyzed. All of them had infants admitted to a Nutritional Rehabilitation Center. A structured interview was administered to the mothers by specially trained social workers during the period from January through March 1977. It was found that: 1) a majority of mothers were under medical supervision during pregnancy; 2) the weight of the infants at birth was significantly greater than 2,500 g; 3) the duration of breast feeding was less than 1 month in 64.2% of cases; 4) 62% of the mothers had no knowledge of the normal parameters of infant development; 5) almost a quarter (21%) of the families were classified as cases of extreme poverty. They provided very little sensory stimulation to their offspring, in part due to a very deficient physical home environment, 6) Verbal communication between the members of the household was very poor and hindered the rehabilitation of the patient and the family.

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