[Report 1921] / Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer of Health, Swindon Borough.

  • Swindon Borough Council
Date:
1921
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1921] / Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer of Health, Swindon Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    4/148 page 2
    23 As regards the 22 children born in the home, 2 were still-born, one from disease of the mother, and the other from Malformation of the infant. One child developed Ophthalmia Neonatorum. 191 prospective mothers were visited by the Health Visitors. INFANT WELFARE. 1125 births occurred in the Borough, 1145 births were inves¬ tigated, 20 of these being in respect of babies born in the previous year. 1178 visits and 3915 revisits were paid by the Health Visitors during the year. Of these 1145 cases investigated 39 were illegitimate, whilst 1106 were legitimate. The mothers of Swindon usually engage the services of a midwife for their confinements, less than a quarter engaging the services of a doctor before delivery ; but, of course, in all com¬ plicated cases medical advise has to be summoned. It may be said that this arrangement is working in a satisfactory manner. There was 1 case of Puerperal Fever notified during the year, with no death. 7 women died from diseases cf pregnancy, and 7 from causes incidental to childbirth. 7 cases of Ophthalmia Neonatorum were notified. The great amount of research which has been prosecuted in connection with the rearing of children during the past decade has brought into prominence the vast importance of breast feeding. It has always been conceded that breast feeding is better than artificial feeding, but thirty years ago it was held, on chemical evidence mainly, that new-born children could be fed artificially without any great risk or difficulty. This opinion, it is but fair to add, was never held by those who were most qualified to form judgment. The advance of our knowledge of biological chemistry has shown us that the matter is by no means so simple, and both theoretical and practical considerations have led us to the point that we must admit that there is no substitute for breast-feeding which is satisfactory, and that in all probability there never will be. The difficulties of artificial rearing of infants and the disas¬ trous results which follow it can be brought home by considering the evidence that is offered by Swindon for the year 1921. Through¬ out this year there has been a rigorous campaign to promote breast feeding ; a campaign which has met with very satisfactory results. Of the children born in 1921, some ninety per cent were breast fed at the beginning, and though in a considerable propor¬ tion of these cases breast feeding was discontinued during the later months of lactation, some seventy per cent of all the babies
    digitised image 1
    digitised image 2
    digitised image 3