The Effects of Breastfeeding and Birth Spacing on Infant and Child Mortality in Bolivia

Abstract

Data from the Demographic and Health Survey of Bolivia, 1989, are used to examine the influence of breastfeeding and birth spacing on infant and child mortality during the first two years of life. Event-history techniques show that illness which leads to the cessation of lactation, rather than the cessation of lactation for other reasons, is the dominant factor contributing to mortality. Where lactation is separated from the effect of illness, it had no effect on infant and child survival, except during the very early months of life. Short birth intervals also increased the risk of dying during the first two years of life, as did receiving ante-natal care from a midwife.