Infant care practices in a metropolitan aboriginal population Bibbulung Gnarneep Team.
OBJECTIVE
To describe sleeping position, room and bed-sharing, tobacco smoke exposure and infant feeding for a sample of Australian Aboriginal infants from a metropolitan area.


METHODS
Interviews with Aboriginal mothers who resided in the Perth metropolitan area and had given birth during a continuous 15-month study period. The interviews took place when the infants were approximately 6-12 weeks old and efforts were made to contact all eligible mothers. Results are presented as proportions with 95% confidence intervals.


RESULTS
Of all the eligible mothers (n = 515), 87% were contacted and 53% (n = 273) completed the interview. Of all the infants, 11% slept prone, 96% shared a room and 68% shared a bed; 65% of mothers smoked during pregnancy and 65% were smokers at the time of interview; 66% of the partners were smokers and 80% of the infants were regularly exposed to tobacco smoke; 89% of mothers initiated breast-feeding and 70% were breast-feeding at time of interview.


CONCLUSIONS
Prevalences of non-prone sleeping and breast-feeding are similar to the overall Western Australian population, whilst tobacco smoke exposure of the infants is markedly higher. Programs of community and family education and support are required urgently to decrease this exposure.
Eades
S J
SJ
Epidemiology Division, TVW Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, West Perth, Australia. sandy@ichr.uwa.edu.au
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A W
AW
D000293:Adolescent; D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007224:Infant Care; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers; D011247:Pregnancy; D016684:Prone Position; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012307:Risk Factors; D012890:Sleep; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D013398:Sudden Infant Death / Q000517:prevention & control*; D016683:Supine Position; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution; D014904:Western Australia / Q000453:epidemiology
D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution