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Artificial nutrition and hydration (ANH) may be provided to individuals in the home environment, and family caregivers are often involved in the management of this intervention. This experience can have multiple consequences for families.The aim of this meta-ethnography is to explore and synthesize the personal experiences of family caregivers providing care to a person receiving home ANH.A comprehensive search of the literature was conducted without any time limitations applied. Seven stages of meta-ethnography were followed. Public and patient involvement was incorporated into the development of the line of argument synthesis in this review. This review is reported following the eMERGe guidelines and it was registered in PROSPERO.A total of 22 studies were included representing the experiences of 336 family caregivers. Two main themes emerged: (1) sink or swim, being thrown in at the deep end; and (2) professional support as a bedrock. The first theme represents the experiences from the very start of home ANH when the family caregivers may be overwhelmed with the level of skills they have to acquire. With time, family caregivers perceived the benefits, but also the challenges, associated with managing home ANH. If a person receiving home ANH was able to continue with some oral intake, it had a positive impact on family caregivers' experiences. The second theme represents the influence of professional support on the lived experience of family caregivers managing home ANH. This support should be individualized, comprehensive, and co-created with the family caregiver and the person receiving home ANH.This review concluded that caring for a person receiving home ANH can be very challenging for family caregivers. Family caregivers require personalized support from a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals to acquire skills, competence and confidence in this new role. Speech and language therapists are important members of this multidisciplinary team because they can facilitate a continuation of oral intake as appropriate.What is already known on the subject ANH has an impact not only on the person receiving it but also on the wider family and family caregivers. Healthcare professionals have a role in supporting people living with ANH. What this paper adds to existing knowledge This review presents a rigorous qualitative evidence synthesis that adheres fully to the eMERGe guidance for reporting of meta-ethnography. Within this meta-ethnography a current caregiver was consulted during the creation of the line of argument synthesis to provide a unique perspective to the review process. This review synthesized the current body of evidence that explores the lived experience of home ANH (any type) for family caregivers, identifies where professional support is required and highlights current gaps. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? Family caregivers require personalized support from a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals to adjust to living with home ANH. This support assists people living with home ANH in perceiving benefits and developing more positive experiences. Speech and language therapists are important members of the multidisciplinary team supporting individuals with home ANH and their family caregivers as they can facilitate a continuation of oral intake as appropriate.

This article states that about 3–13 % of infants display symptoms of functional constipation. These symptoms may cause parents to worry, and drive them to seek medical advice. Functional constipation is often observed in infants, especially when switching from breast milk to artificial feeding or to solid food. In this case, the younger the child, the higher the risk of anatomical or organic causes, although the incidence of functional constipation reaches 97 % of all cases of constipations in children. This article discusses the feasibility and effectiveness of diet therapy and medical treatment of functional constipation.

Two hundred [200] mothers consecutively attending Al-Fateh Paediatric Hospital, Benghazi in 1992 were interviewed. The majority of women were under 30 years of age, had primary or no education, were housewives, had no experience of pregnancy wastage or child loss, used no contraception, had one to three living children, had information about breast-feeding from the mother-in-law, a relative or a neighbour, considered breast-feeding a natural way, nutritionally superior and hygienic, and practised mixed feeding. The reasons for introducing artificial feeding were maternal in 49.7% of cases, filial [related to the baby] in 36.5% and due to social pressure in 13.8%. Measures for successful breast-feeding are emphasized

Background: Breast milk has nutritional, anti-allergic, anti-infective, defensive, developmental, psychological and socio-economic proprieties for both mother and infant. So, exclusive breast-feeding (EBF) is a unique source of feeding during the first six months of an infant’s life. Though the numerous proprieties of breast milk, the median duration of EBF in Egypt is 1.8 months making the identification of risk factors a high priority. The aim was to assess factors affecting mothers' choice of artificial feeding postpartum and during the first six months of infant life. Design; A descriptive cross –sectional exploratory was used. Sample: A purposive sample of 365 mothers were chosen. Tools: I- Socio demographic questionnaire. II- Anthropometric measurements. III- Factors of artificial feeding questionnaire. Results; the rate of EBF is very low as 80% of mothers gave artificial feeding, while only 20% gave mixed feeding. Artificial feeding was associated significantly with socio demographic characteristics as 44.7 % are in age group 20 - < 30 years and 30.1% are read and write. Regarding maternal factors, 60 % of the mothers have insufficient time. Likewise, 85.2 % of the mothers have feeling of need to teach infant to eat and 74.8 % of them had previous experience of artificial feeding. Regarding feeding practices, 70 % gave babies pre-lacteal fluids. Conclusion; Timely initiation and pattern of breastfeeding at Minia is unsatisfactory as 80 % of the participant mothers did not apply WHO recommendations attributed significantly to specific socio-demographic characteristics of infant/ mother, maternal, environmental, infant and health care services factors. Recommendations; Pre natal and post natal education of mothers to achieve longer duration of breast feeding and overcoming maternal, infant and environmental barriers. Provide continuous training of health care providers on EBF importance at all levels.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance and economic indicators of baby goats region submitted to different feeding systems in the Semiarid. A total of 30 baby goats of breed Parda Alpina × without defined racial pattern (SPRD) with initial weight of 3.35 kg ± 0.65 kg and final weight of 12.3 kg ± 0.5 kg were used, distributed in a completely randomized design in three breastfeeding systems with ten replicates each: traditional system (with natural breastfeeding), intensive breastfeeding system without concentrated supplementation, and intensive breastfeeding with concentrated supplementation. Goats submitted to the intensive artificial feeding system without concentrated supplementation showed a similar weight gain (121 g/day) when compared to the goats submitted to the system of suckling with concentrated supplementation (126 g/day). The highest income was provided by the animals submitted to the intensive system of suckling with concentrate. The gross margin for the two centenarians was positive, that is, revenues are higher than the effective operating cost, allowing us to conclude that the activity is paying off and will survive, at least in the short term. The diet of kids using concentrate provided better dry matter intake, greater weight gain and consequently presented better economic indicators.

The ability of an insect to vector a plant virus has traditionally been determined through controlled greenhouse transmission experiments that are notoriously resource- and time-consuming and of un...

Prof. Carmichael says that doctors deal with less digestive disorders in breastfed babies than they do in formula-fed babies.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of maternal breastfeeding, artificial feeding, types of introduction of complementary food introduction and the use of bottle and pacifier on lip /tongue pressure and maximum molar bite force of school children. Thirty-five healthy children with mixed dentition (20 boys and 15 girls), aged 6-10 years, participated in this study. The children were evaluated based on anthropometry, electronic scale and portable stadiometer, feeding practices (breastfeeding, artificial feeding, introduction of complementary food), bottle and pacifier use, tongue and lips strength and molar bite force. The results were submitted to ANOVA (p

Нoney bees (Apis mellifera L., 1758) perform a global plant pollination function. For normal development, bee colonies need to meet their nutritional needs. The study aims to determine the effectiveness of artificial bee feeding to increase their flight activity on pollinating fruit crops. To achieve this goal, a scheme for the use of artificial feeding was developed and the optimal set of feeds was selected as well as the influence of artificial feeding on an increase of colony strength and the flight activity of bees was investigated. The study was conducted in a private orchard in 2020. For feeding of bees used: candy in February (1 kg 5 times with an interval of 6 days); sugar syrup both in March (300 g 6 times with an interval of 3 days) and in April (100 g on the first day of flowering), also for bee training for pollination in April, the second experimental group was fed geranium-flavored syrup (1 %); protein mixture in March (500 g 3 times with an interval of 6 days). It has been experimentally proven that the use of artificial feeding is necessary for effective pollination in April. Those bee colonies that have been fed since the beginning of February have made a cleaning flight three days earlier and at a lower temperature (+8…+10 C) while the control colonies do not increase the required number of bees for effective pollination of fruit crops (first decade of April). The complex carbohydrate-protein feeding of bee colonies according to the developed scheme increases the strength of bee colonies by 5–21 % and increases the number of brood cells by 15.4 %. The effectiveness of bee feeding on orchard pollination is confirmed by an increase in their flight activity by 44–47 % during the flowering of cherries, sweet cherries, and pears and by 26–35 % during the flowering of apple trees. The use of flavored syrup allows increasing the flight activity of bees by 6–12 % compared to non-flavored syrup the day after feeding.

Aquaculture is currently the foundation of the world's animal protein provider. The sustainability of this sector is greatly influenced by business governance which must prioritize environmentally friendly aspects. Nutrient enrichment waste and the spread of fish and other aquatic organisms are significant issues present in aquaculture systems throughout the world today, especially intensive aquaculture. The purpose of writing this article is to provide an overview of biofloc as a solution in overcoming environmental problems for a sustainable future aquaculture. Intensive aquaculture applies high density maintenance and artificial feeding. The system leads to environmental problems because a large amount of waste produced contains solids and nutrients that accumulate into pollutants that cause eutrophication and toxins for aquatic organisms. Biofloc technology is a new approach to reduce the waste of aquaculture activities. In this system, heterotrophic bacteria and algae are grown together in flocks under controlled conditions with no or minimal water exchange. Biofloc is a nutrient package that can be utilized directly by farm animals. Biofloc also acts as biocontrol. Biofloc technology can help overcome problems in intensive aquaculture.

Cities are among the most extreme forms of anthropogenic ecosystem modification and urbanization processes exert profound effects on animal populations through multiple ecological pathways. Increased access to human associated food items may alter species’ foraging behavior and diet, in turn modifying the normal microbial community of the gastrointestinal tract, ultimately impacting their health. It is crucial we understand the role of dietary niche breadth and the resulting shift in the gut microbiota as urban animals navigate novel dietary resources. We combined stable isotope analysis of hair and microbiome analysis of four gut regions across the gastrointestinal tract to investigate the effects of urbanization on the diet and gut microbiota of two sympatric species of rodent with different dietary niches; the omnivorous large Japanese field mouse (Apodemus speciosus) and the relatively more herbivorous grey red-backed vole (Myodes rufocanus). Both species exhibited an expanded dietary niche width within the urban areas potentially attributable to novel anthropogenic foods and altered resource availability. We detected a dietary shift in which urban A. speciosus consumed more terrestrial animal protein and M. rufocanus more plant leaves and stems. Such changes in resource use may be associated with an altered gut microbial community structure. There was an increased abundance of the presumably probiotic Lactobacillus in the small intestine of urban A. speciosus and potentially pathogenic Helicobacter in the colon of M. rufocanus. Together, these results suggest that even taxonomically similar species may exhibit divergent responses to urbanization with consequences for the gut microbiota and broader ecological interactions.

Artificial tick feeding systems (ATFS) can be used to study tick biology and tick-pathogen interactions. Due to the long feeding duration of hard ticks, antibiotics are commonly added to the in vitro blood meal to prevent the blood from decaying. This may affect the ticks’ microbiome, including mutualistic bacteria that play an important role in tick biology. This effect was examined by the consecutive feeding of Ixodes ricinus larvae, nymphs, and adults in vitro with and without the supplementation of gentamicin and in parallel on calves. DNA extracted from unfed females was analyzed by 16S rRNA sequencing. The abundance of Candidatus Midichloria mitochondrii, Rickettsia helvetica and Spiroplasma spp. was measured by qPCR in unfed larvae, nymphs, and adults. Larvae and nymphs fed on calves performed significantly better compared to both in vitro groups. Adults fed on blood supplemented with gentamicin and B vitamins had a higher detachment proportion and weight compared to the group fed with B vitamins but without gentamicin. The detachment proportion and weights of females did not differ significantly between ticks fed on calves and in vitro with gentamicin, but the fecundity was significantly higher in ticks fed on calves. 16S rRNA sequencing showed a higher microbiome species richness in ticks fed on calves compared to ticks fed in vitro. A shift in microbiome composition, with Ca. Midichloria mitochondrii as dominant species in females fed as juveniles on calves and R. helvetica as the most abundant species in females previously fed in vitro was observed. Females fed in vitro without gentamicin showed significant lower loads of Ca. M. mitochondrii compared to females fed in vitro with gentamicin and ticks fed on calves. Spiroplasma spp. were exclusively detected in female ticks fed on cattle by qPCR, but 16S rRNA sequencing results also showed a low abundance in in vitro females exposed to gentamicin. In conclusion, the employed feeding method and gentamicin supplementation affected the ticks’ microbiome composition and fecundity. Since these changes may have an impact on tick biology and vector competence, they should be taken into account in studies employing ATFS.

Relevance: immunotropic effects of cholecalciferol are caused by vitamin-D-induced synthesis of antimicrobial peptides (AMP), in particular р-defensins. There are very few studies in pediatric clinical practice confirming the effect of vitamin D availability on AMP synthesis. Aim: analysis of the correlation between vitamin D availability and AMP production and assessment of the effect of cholecalciferol medication intake on defensin synthesis in young children. Materials and methods : 108 healthy children aged 1 month to 3 years were examined, of which 34 (31.5%) were adequately provided with vitamin D (calcidiol level over 30 ng/ml), 40 (37.0%) with insufficiency (20 to 30 ng/ml), 27 (25.0%) with vitamin D deficiency (10 to 20 ng/ml) and 7 (6.5%) with severe deficit (less than 10 ng/ml). In the presence of hypovitaminose of vitamin D the monthly course of cholecalciferol in doses of 2000-4000 lU/day was prescribed for correction, and in normal provision -prophylactic administration of 1000 IU/day. The indices of 25(ON)D, β1- and β2-defensins were determined three times. Results. On natural feeding, the rates of β1-defensin are 2.3 times (p

The article presents data on the prevalence of infant colic, etiological factors, diagnostic criteria, differential diagnosis and therapy with justification of approaches to the choice of formula in children on artificial feeding. When choosing a formula, it is necessary to take into account the compositional features aimed at overcoming the functional immaturity of the gastrointestinal tract, enteric nervous system, and the ongoing formation of the intestinal microbiome – the presence of a partially hydrolyzed protein, a reduced lactose content, the presence of prebiotics (fructooligosaccharides) and probiotics. The formula Similac Comfort is fully compliant. This formula additionally contains oligosaccharide of the breast milk 2 fucosillactose (2’-FL), 0.2 g / l – identical to that found in breast milk, which has proven positive effects in the form of an immunomodulating effect, anti-infectious effect, is involved in the regulation of growth and maturation of intestinal epithelial cells, in the development of the nervous system.

The aim of this work was to study the level of nutritional knowledge of mothers about breast and artificial feeding, sources of nutritional knowledge of mothers was also studied. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 mothers, selected randomly from urban and rural areas in Sharkia Governorate, Egypt during the period from March to May, 2019. All mothers filled a questionnaire to evaluate their knowledge about breast and artificial feeding. The results showed that the highest percentage of working and housewives mothers (50.0 and 53.1%) were aged 25-32 years old, respectively. About 65.8 and 46.3% of the working mother and housewives mothers were from urban area, respectively. The majority of working mothers were educated. The results revealed that the majority of working and housewives mothers (97.5 and 92.1%) were married. The results indicated that the children sex was 63.2% male and 36.8% female for working mothers. Whereas, they were 46.9% male and 53.1% female for housewives. It is obvious that the 57.9% of working mothers had children their age were (576-850) days. Whereas, the highest proportion of housewives (37.7%) had children their age was 25-300 days. The results indicated that the percentage of good nutrition children was 97.5 and 89.5% of housewives and working mothers, respectively. The results declared that the working and housewives mothers get nutritional knowledge by percent 63.2 and 46.3% from visiting doctor, respectively. The results illustrated that the highest percentage of working and housewives mothers (84.2 and 60.5%) had low level of general knowledge about breast feeding. Also, most of working and housewives mothers (76.3 and 62.3%) had low level of general knowledge about artificial feeding. It can be concluded that the most of subjects had low level of knowledge about breast and artificial feeding. Therefore, the recommendions are the use of programs to raise awareness for mothers about breast and artificial feeding.

Research on the effect of natural and artificial feed on the growth and survival of African catfish at the Noekele Central Seed Center in Kupang Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province. The center only uses artificial food as fish food while natural food has never been used, therefore researchers are motivated to use natural food then researchers want to see how the influence of natural food is. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of natural and artificial feeding on the growth and survival of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus Burchell) at the Noekele Central Seed Center in Kupang Regency, knowing the implementation of research results on the learning process of biology at school. The method used in this study is an experimental study using an experimental design that is Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with 3 treatments, each treatment was repeated 3 times namely P0 (Control), P1 (Pellets), and P2 (Silkworms). The data analysis technique used in this study was that this study was analyzed using analysis of variance (Anova) in accordance with the Completely Randomized Design (CRD). The average subsequent treatment was tested using the Duncan Multiple Range Test (DMRT) with a significant level of 5%. The results showed that the treatment of artificial feed (pellets) and natural feed (silk worms) showed significant differences between the treatments for growth and survival of Dumbo catfish (Clarias gariepinus Burchell.). The highest absolute length growth results were found in the P2 treatment of natural silk worm feed of 3.10 cm and the absolute weight of 2.68 grams of survival of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus Burchell.) Highest seeds in natural and artificial food which was 100%.

Development and maintenance of laboratory tick colonies provides reliable access to a variety of tick species at multiple life stages. Advances in techniques for the membrane feeding of ticks reduce the number of laboratory animals needed for colony maintenance. In the present study, modifications to the existing protocol for in vitro feeding of the argasid species Ornithodoros tartakovskyi were made. Adult O. tartakovskyi ticks of both sexes were allowed to feed to engorgement using a novel membrane feeding apparatus in a six-well plate format with well-inserts of laboratory-grade, wax sealing film. Of the 193 ticks placed on the membrane, 89% (n = 172) fed until engorgement and subsequently detached. The modified feeding method described will aid in future laboratory tick-based research because it allows for increased containment, ease of sorting, successful in vitro feeding, easy replacement of blood meals and a reduction in the total volume of blood meal required.

In the article, the authors cite modern data on the frequency of Caesarean section in obstetric practice, report the peculiarities of adaptation of children born by Caesarean section surgery, which is characterized by a high frequency of borderline conditions, pathological loss of body weight, functional disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, higher morbidity in the subsequent period. In addition, the authors note that mothers of these children are more likely to have hypogalactia, which is largely responsible for impaired adaptation in infants and their transfer to artificial feeding. Referring to the published works, the authors offer various options to improve the process of adaptation in this contingent of children.

Objective The aim of this study was to discover the personal experience and feelings of primiparous women who had to abandon breastfeeding (BF) before the expected time, as well as the causes of abandonment and the role of health professionals. Method A qualitative study through semi-structured interview was carried out. A purposive sampling by key informants was conducted, until saturation of the information was reached. Qualitative content analysis was carried out to generate codes and assign categories. Results We interviewed 15 women aged 33.1 (SD 5.4) years. Ambivalent feelings were found, while BF was considered a satisfying experience, it was also sacrificial and painful. They refer to a lack of knowledge, and insecurity about nourishing their infant and physical pain seem to be the most important reasons for giving up. There is also a duality of feelings between the peace of mind afforded by artificial feeding, knowing that their child is well nourished, and the feeling of guilt for not having maintained BF. They believe that professionals do not adequately perform their work to promote BF, referring to numerous occasions when health professionals themselves have performed practices contrary to its establishment and maintenance. Conclusions In the mothers’ account, emotional training and emotional support needs are insufficiently covered. Nursing professionals involved in the care of these women should systematically explore these needs.

Background.The prevalence of symptoms of life-threatening events in infants was previously studied using hospital data. However, not all parents in the event of such symptoms seek medical help in the hospital.Objective.Our aim was to identify the prevalence and risk factors of life-threatening events in infants in the first year of life.Methods.In the period from November 2017 to February 2018, we interviewed mothers who have children in their second year of life who are registered at children's outpatient clinics in Syktyvkar. Respondents noted episodes of absent, infrequent or irregular breathing, blanching or cyanosis of the skin, changes in muscle tone (hypo- or hypertonia), changes in the level of responses that occurred in infancy. The prevalence of symptoms of life-threatening events was estimated based on the total number of infants in the first year of life (n = 3088) who lived in Syktyvkar as of January 1, 2018.Results.At least one symptom of life-threatening events in infancy was reported by 43 (4.3%) of the 1001 mothers surveyed. The prevalence of symptoms was 429.5 [95% confidence interval (CI) 321–574] per 10,000 children of the corresponding age. Independent predictors of life-threatening events in children of the first year of life were sudden deaths of relatives under the age of 50 years [odds ratio (OR) 2.4; 95% CI 1.1–5.3], cases of pre-syncope or syncope in relatives (OR 4.4, 95% CI 2.1–9.0), artificial feeding of infants (OR 4.0, 95% CI 1.5–11.2). The sensitivity of the model, which took into account the presence of at least one of the three predictors, was 19% (8/43), specificity — 99% (2/958).Conclusion.The issue of the occurrence of life-threatening events in an infant can impact every 25th family. In every fifth infant, the occurrence of symptoms of life-threatening events can be predicted based on risk factors.

The purpose of the work was to evaluate the effectiveness of the elimination diet in infants with gastrointestinal manifestations of food allergy.Patients and methods. 84 children aged 2 months to 1 year were examined with gastrointestinal food allergy to cow's milk proteins. All children were prescribed an elimination diet with the exclusion of cow's milk proteins. An assessment was made of the regression of gastrointestinal symptoms on day 3, 7 and 14 of diet therapy and the determination of the concentration of eosinophilic cationic protein in serum. The general-clinical, immunological, allergological and statistical methods of research were used.Results. The purpose of the elimination diet with the exclusion of cow's milk proteins for nursing mothers and the use of mixtures with extensive hydrolysis of protein in the case of artificial feeding leads to a complete regression of gastrointestinal and skin symptoms in all examined children on the 14th day of diet therapy, which is further confirmed by the normalization of the concentration of eosinophilic cationic serum protein in diet therapy. Conclusions. Elimination of cow's milk proteins in infants with gastrointestinal food allergy results in complete regression of gastrointestinal and skin symptoms on day 14 of diet therapy, and determination of the concentration of eosinophilic cationic protein in serum can be used as an additional criterion for the effectiveness of diet therapy.

This paper is aimed to analyze Whiteleg shrimp’s (Penaeus vannamei’s) acoustic behavior collected in a farming pond. According to artificial feeding events, the chewing sound from shrimps is obtained by a passive acoustic recorder. The sound pressure level of the 1-minute segments between the two feedings is lower than that of after feeding, but higher than that of before feeding. There are two changing parts in the spectrum of several segments, in which one type has a low-frequency energy mainly in 2kHz, and the other has a high frequency energy in 4-15kHz. It is related to shrimps chewing behavior with a large number of ‘click’ signals. By analyzing the chewing sound from individual shrimp, time length of the signal is around 0.01s and the frequency range is about 4-15kHz. The behavior corresponding to the sound pressure level of 2kHz mentioned above has not been determined. In addition, from no-feeding data at night, there are also short-time ‘click’ signals, which are notably different from daytime’s data, and sometimes is concentrated on the low-frequency (about 4kHz) from the energy of the signal. Further research is needed to determine whether there is a relationship between the two low-frequency signals.

This chapter collects information on artificial infant feeding published before 1860, the date when commercial formula became available. There is extensive artefactual evidence from thousands of feeding vessels since the Bronze Age. Literature on the use of animal milk for infant feeding begins with Soranus in the 2nd century c.e. Literature evidence from the very first printed books in the 15th century proves that physicians, surgeons, midwives, and the laity were aware of the opportunities and risks of artificial infant feeding. Most 17th- to 19th-century books on infant care contained detailed recipes for one or several of the following infant foods: pap, a semi-solid food made of flour or breadcrumbs cooked in water with or without milk; gruel, a thin porridge resulting from boiling cereal in water or milk; and panada, a preparation of various cereals or bread cooked in broth. During the 18th century, the published opinion on artificial feeding evolved from health concern to moral ideology. This view ignored the social and economic pressures which forced many mothers to forego or shorten breastfeeding. Bottle feeding was common practice throughout history.

Bartonellae are facultative intracellular alpha-proteobacteria often transmitted by arthropods. Ixodes ricinus is the most important vector for arthropod-borne pathogens in Europe. However, its vector competence for Bartonella spp. is still unclear. This study aimed to experimentally compare its vector competence for three Bartonella species: B. henselae, B. grahamii, and B. schoenbuchensis. A total of 1333 ticks (1021 nymphs and 312 adults) were separated into four groups, one for each pathogen and a negative control group. Ticks were fed artificially with bovine blood spiked with the respective Bartonella species. DNA was extracted from selected ticks to verify Bartonella-infection by PCR. DNA of Bartonella spp. was detected in 34% of nymphs and females after feeding. The best engorgement results were obtained by ticks fed with B. henselae-spiked blood (65.3%) and B. schoenbuchensis (61.6%). Significantly more nymphs fed on infected blood (37.3%) molted into adults compared to the control group (11.4%). Bartonella DNA was found in 22% of eggs laid by previously infected females and in 8.6% of adults molted from infected nymphs. The transovarial and transstadial transmission of bartonellae suggest that I. ricinus could be a potential vector for three bacteria.

The diet of free-ranging bears is an important dimension regarding their ecology, affecting their behavior, population structure, and relation with humans. In Croatia, there has been no recent study on the natural food habits of brown bears (Ursus arctos) or the influence of artificial feeding sites on their diet. During 2017, we collected 53 brown bear stomachs from bears in 2 regions of Croatia—Gorski Kotar and Lika—to assess their diet. Plants—Allium ursinum,thePoaceaefamily,Cornus mas,berries (i.e.,Prunus avium, Rubus plicatus), beechnuts (Fagusspp.)—and various plant parts (i.e., dry leaves, buds, conifer needles, and twigs), as well as mushrooms, made up 80% of the percentage of the volume (%V) of all consumed items. Corn (Zea mays) from the feeding sites made up 37% of the bears' diet (%V), whereas 20% (%V) was meat and 14% (%V) was pome fruits. Scavenged or preyed animal species, such as wild boar (Sus scrofa), horse (Equus caballus), domestic pig (S. scrofa domesticus), cattle (Bos taurus), roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), and small mammals comprised>66% of %FO (frequency of occurrence), but only 20% of %V. Our results showed that food resources (i.e., livestock such as horses, cattle, and pigs, and corn) found at supplemental feeding sites were more frequently chosen by bears than natural food in 2017, a year characterized by almost no beechnut crop. The results showed that subadult bears obtained most food from feeding sites. These 2 patterns suggested that bears may focus on artificial feeding sites to find food in years when natural food sources are depleted, although this should be tested using diet and food availability data collected from several years.

Coxiella burnetii (Derrick) Philip, the causative agent of Q fever, is mainly transmitted by aerosols, but ticks can also be a source of infection. Transstadial and transovarial transmission of C. burnetii by Hyalomma lusitanicum (Koch) has been suggested. There is a close relationship between this tick species, wild animals and C. burnetii but the transmission in a natural environment has not been demonstrated. In this study, we collected 80 engorged nymphs of H. lusitanicum from red deer and wild rabbits. They moult to adults under laboratory conditions and we feed them artificially through silicone membranes after a preconditioning period. C. burnetii DNA was tested in ticks, blood and faeces samples using real-time PCR. The pathogen was found in 36.2% of fed adults, demonstrating that transstadial transmission from nymph to adult occurs in nature. The presence of DNA in the 60.0% of blood samples after artificial feeding confirms that adults transmit the bacteria during feeding. Further studies are needed about co-feeding and other possible transmission routes to define the role of this tick species in the cycle of C. burnetii.

Biogenic oil film is a natural surface slick that is mainly derived by sea flora and fauna. The often observation of the film near aquaculture facilities has raised awareness on the possibility of the linkage between the development of the film and the anthropogenic activities taking place on site (i.e. artificial feeding and liquid waste). This study aims to investigate the possibility of the detection of biogenic oil film on optical satellite images and discriminate it from other oceanographic phenomena. For the purposes of the study we have used a Sentinel-2 (S2) dataset consisted of 73 images for the year 2019 to detect the film on three aquaculture areas. An automatic procedure was developed on a Python based algorithm which included the following stages: (a) downloading images, (b) preprocessing the input data, (c) identifying dark formations in the adjacent fish farming area, (d) extracting attribute tables with the statistical characteristics of the formations (shape, area, etc.), (e) classification of formations as biogenic film or other (lookalike) and (f) extraction of biogenic film vectors. The developed algorithm was able to detect biogenic oil film successfully however some misleading results regarding the decision of true or false positive (biogenic oil film or lookalike) was evidenced. The efficiency of the algorithm was tested against manual classification with overall accuracy 82,6%. As further step the results of this study should be validated with in-situ measurements and further work is required to verify the results obtained by testing the methods in other sites.

To solve the problem of intelligent feeding of Penaeus Vannamei, this paper presents a study on the characteristics of acoustic signals during feeding, which can adaptively control the feeding amount. In this experiment, a sound acquisition system was designed for the weak sound signal of feeding of Penaeus Vannamei. The sound signals of different feeding states of Penaeus Vannamei were collected under the condition of artificial feeding through several feeding box experiments. Through a large number of data analysis, we get and confirm the typical sound signal of feeding of Penaeus Vannamei. The frequency band of sound signal distribution in feeding of Penaeus Vannamei was studied. It provides theoretical support for further study on the feeding pattern of Penaeus Vannamei.

This chapter describes the normal pattern of growth during infancy, childhood and adolescence. Early childhood and adolescence is recognised as a critical period in child development, which encompasses physical, cognitive, social and emotional health. Nutrition is integral to this development. In infancy and early childhood, parents and caregivers are primarily responsible for nutrition but as children get older they have increasing autonomy or control over their food preferences and food choices. During infancy there is a rapid rate of physical growth and development. Childhood typically describes the time period between infancy and adolescence. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines adolescence as the period between ten and nineteen years. During childhood, the rate of growth (height and weight) is relatively steady and linear until adolescence. Breastfeeding is the physiological norm for infants and there is overwhelming evidence to support breastfeeding over artificial feeding in most instances.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) results from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2). The clinical features and subsequent medical treatment, combined with the impact of a global pandemic, require specific nutritional therapy in hospitalised adults. This document aims to provide Australian and New Zealand clinicians with guidance on managing critically and acutely unwell adult patients hospitalised with COVID‐19. These recommendations were developed using expert consensus, incorporating the documented clinical signs and metabolic processes associated with COVID‐19, the literature from other respiratory illnesses, in particular acute respiratory distress syndrome, and published guidelines for medical management of COVID‐19 and general nutrition and intensive care. Patients hospitalised with COVID‐19 are likely to have preexisting comorbidities, and the ensuing inflammatory response may result in increased metabolic demands, protein catabolism, and poor glycaemic control. Common medical interventions, including deep sedation, early mechanical ventilation, fluid restriction, and management in the prone position, may exacerbate gastrointestinal dysfunction and affect nutritional intake. Nutrition care should be tailored to pandemic capacity, with early gastric feeding commenced using an algorithm to provide nutrition for the first 5–7 days in lower‐nutritional‐risk patients and individualised care for high‐nutritional‐risk patients where capacity allows. Indirect calorimetry should be avoided owing to potential aerosol exposure and therefore infection risk to healthcare providers. Use of a volume‐controlled, higher‐protein enteral formula and gastric residual volume monitoring should be initiated. Careful monitoring, particularly after intensive care unit stay, is required to ensure appropriate nutrition delivery to prevent muscle deconditioning and aid recovery. The infectious nature of SARS‐CoV‐2 and the expected high volume of patient admissions will require contingency planning to optimise staffing resources including upskilling, ensure adequate nutrition supplies, facilitate remote consultations, and optimise food service management. These guidelines provide recommendations on how to manage the aforementioned aspects when providing nutrition support to patients during the SARS‐CoV‐2 pandemic.

Authors’ reply re: ’Maternal transmission of SARS-COV-2 to the neonate, and possible routes for such transmission: A systematic review and critical analysis (Response to BJOG-20-1416)Kate F Walker1, Keelin O’Donoghue2, Nicky Grace3, Jon Dorling4, Jeannette L Comeau4, Wentao Li5 Jim G Thornton11Division of Child Health, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, School of Medicine, University of Nottingham2The Irish Centre for Maternal and Child Health, University College Cork, Cork University Maternity Hospital, Cork, Ireland3 School of English, University of Nottingham4Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada5Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Monash University, Clayton, AustraliaThank you for the opportunity to comment on the letter by Dr Xue from Shanghai Jiao Tong University. We agree there are many weaknesses in the data we reviewed. Dr Xue has identified one. Others are the incomplete reporting of infant feeding and mother-child interactions, and the frequent lack of infant testing to confirm or refute the possibility of vertical transmission of COVID-19. Finally, although we simply provided summary totals, it would be statistically preferable to combine series using the Mantel-Haenszel method and calculate a relative risk. We judged that doing this in light of the uncertainties around the data which Dr Xue has identified, might give a spurious precision to our results. As he says, more work is needed. For now we think it remains reasonable to not regard COVID-19 in itself, as an indication for Caesarean, artificial feeding or separation, in the mother and baby’s interest.

Artificial wildlife feeding might contribute to the successful establishment of some invasive alien species, like the Eastern grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) in Europe and the UK. Reducing squirrel feeding at urban parks can be important to reduce squirrel populations while avoiding social conflicts. From April to October 2018, we conducted interviews and administered factorial surveys to two samples of visitors at the Valentino urban park in Torino (Italy). We established whether squirrel feeding can be regarded as an independent or an interdependent behavior, by eliciting visitors’ moral beliefs, and their empirical and normative expectations.Most respondents did not regard artificial feeding as something neither intrinsically positive nor negative. Satisfaction, the need for a connection with nature and the presence of children were its main causes. On the other hand, feeding squirrels was deemed to be potentially dangerous for squirrel health, and leading to high squirrel densities and to confident squirrels.Factorial surveys indicated that empirical expectations about the behavior of other visitors, altogether with their past behavior, lead visitors to feed squirrels, while the availability of suboptimal food types (e.g. sweets), was deemed to made people less prone to forage squirrels. Our findings indicate that supplementary feeding is an interdependent behavior, governed by descriptive norms. It might be reduced by means of informative panels containing descriptive information about the fact that most visitors indeed do not feed squirrels, as well as by panels emphasizing the potential damage that squirrels could suffer from eating suboptimal food provided by humans.

This is a descriptive study aimed at assessing children’s complications related to fluid and electrolyte disorders. Data were collected in Babel Hospital for Maternal Children through a questionnaire model and data analysis by frequency and percentage, the results showed that (86%) of children lose their appetite, while (14%) They do not lose their appetite, results also show (72%) suffer from diarrhea, while (28%) do not suffer from diarrhea, as results show (20%) suffer from dry mouth, while (80%) do not suffer from dry mouth, The results also show (10%) suffer from syncope, (90%) do not suffer from syncope. Objectives: Evaluation of complications related to fluid disturbances with electricity in the child. Knowing the demographic characteristics of young children who suffer from fluids in disorders such as age, number of children in the family, and number of children in the family. Methodology: A descriptive study used to assess complications related to a fluid electrolyte disorder for a young child. This study was conducted at Baby and Mother Hospital of Babel during the period (5/2 / 2019_3 / 6/2019). A purposeful sample of (50) children, and the study was proven by a committee in the College of Nursing. Statistical SPSS was used to analyze the results of this study Results: According to the interpretation and discussion of the study results, (72%) of the children had diarrhea (48%) of the children had vomiting. (62%) are dependent on artificial feeding, (34%) of children have experienced accidents or fall from a height.

Diseases of the respiratory system are important causes of children’s morbidity. That is why we suggest that the spreading of the clinical experience is helpful for the pediatric community to improve the practical skills and theoretical knowledge of the physicians. The article describes clinical and anamnestic peculiarities of run of period of the breast-feeding age and pre-preschool age at a preterm newborn with a small body weight at birth with a period of gestation of 32–36 weeks and infants of 38–40 weeks of gestation. Taking into account the anatomical and functional features of premature infants, they need of a multidisciplinary approach in order to care and treat them. The important anamnestic determinants that can point possible the later complication are the interrupted pregnancy and incompetent pregnancy, harmful habits (the active and pasive smoking) of gravids and their infectious diseases (kidney disorders) and no-infectious diseases like diabetes mellitus and arterial hypertension. Actually, a physician has to know many various combinations of symptoms and syndromes, which are characteristic for the preterm infants. The article includes clinical and anamnestic patterns of motion of pneumonia in infants with a period of gestation of 32–36 weeks in the breast-feeding and the pre-preschool period of the life. The important clinical determinants that can be used for diagnostic search of family doctor have been determined. The changes in organs and systems associating with development of pneumonias in the preterm infants have been displayed. The most important the clinical determinants of development of pneumonia are the artificial feeding, the violation of feeding and composition of food, disturbance of respiration, the smoking, hyperplasia of the thymus. The main idea of our article is that the most cases of morbidity premature infants depends on immature of internal organs, immune system and development of the infection complication. The main “take-away lessons” are that premature infants should be observed a long time after disease. Conclusions: premature infants need a multidisciplinary approach in order to care and treat them.

IntroductionNatural disasters have many effects on vulnerable groups, especially infants and children. Protecting breastfeeding in disasters is important, because artificial feeding puts a lot of risk to the child. In disasters, artificial nutrition is dangerous to children and its supplementation requires special equipment. There is little information on the nutritional status of infants after disasters in Iran.ProblemThe purpose of this study was to explore the barriers to appropriate lactation after disasters in Iran.MethodThis was a qualitative study using a content analysis method. A total of 19 midwives with disaster-relief experiences were approached for interview. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews. Data analysis was performed using the Graneheim’s approach.ResultsThe categories of maternal factors, neonatal factors, management factors, and context-base factors were extracted from the data.ConclusionThe challenges of social support, mothers’ self-efficacy, educated staff for disasters, and privacy for breastfeeding can be considered as important barriers to breastfeeding in disasters. Training programs, as well as health system support, can help overcome the breastfeeding barriers in disasters.MirMohamadaliIeM, Khani JazaniR, SohrabizadehS, Nikbakht NasrabadiA. Barriers to breastfeeding in disasters in the context of Iran. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2019;34(1):20–24.

Introduction The childhood obesity epidemic has caused the global prevalence of hypertension (HTN) in children to increase from 2% to 4%. However, there is limited data regarding this issue in Pakistan. Hence this cross-sectional study aims to document the prevalence of HTN and its risk factors among children visiting the out patient department (OPD) of a government hospital in Karachi, which is one of the largest cities in Pakistan. Methods One thousand children aged between 4 and 12 years who visited the OPD in October 2019 were included. Blood pressures (BPs) for each child were measured manually and recorded. Their guardians were then interviewed to assess the risk factors present in each child. Data collected were analyzed using SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). Results Among all the children, those between 4 and 7 years of age had a higher prevalence of HTN (19.2%; 9.2% stage 1 and 10.0% stage 2) than children aged between 8 and 12 years (14.5%; 8.0% stage 1 and 6.5% stage 2). Obese children between the age of 4 and 7 years (OR = 3.11) were more likely to develop HTN. Moreover, children with a positive family history of HTN were 1.43 times more likely to have HTN and 1.32 times more likely to have pre-HTN. There was no significant association of gender, artificial feeding, low birth weight, and maternal smoking with HTN. Conclusion The prevalence is particularly higher in children aged between 4 and 7 years (19.2%) and there is a strong association between high BMI (body mass index), family history of HTN, and high-fat diet intake with HTN in children. There was no significant variation of prevalence between both genders.

Cases of severe and enduring Anorexia Nervosa (SEAN) rightly raise a great deal of concern around assessing capacity to refuse treatment (including artificial feeding). Commentators worry that the ...

Premature infants are vulnerable in the course of feeding practices, with lower rates of breastfeeding and inadequate feeding. To analyze breastfeeding rates, use of cow's milk and dietary inadequacies of premature infants in the second semester of Corrected Gestational Age (CGA), comparing them in two moments. This is a non-concurrent cohort with documentary analysis of medical records of 118 premature infants monitored at a secondary referral health service. Sociodemographic and perinatal data were analyzed in relation to the type of breastfeeding, feeding error and use of cow's milk in two moments: 6 months and 12 months of CGA. A reduction in breastfeeding rates was observed by the second semester of CGA (48.3% vs. 36.4%). The prevalence of dietary inadequacies was significant and showed no differences between the two periods (26.3 vs. 27.1%), but the rates of use of cow's milk increased in the second moment (11% vs. 26.3%). Birth weight less than 2000g was associated with a 4.2 times greater chance of artificial feeding in the first year of CGA. Low rates of breastfeeding, use of cow's milk and inadequate complementary feeding are expressive in premature infants whose families have low education and low income.

Annelies Allain has been at the forefront of global efforts to support and promote breastfeeding for more than 30 years. Her accomplishments continue to affect all of us who work with breastfeeding families. Born in the Netherlands in 1945, Annelies Allain-van Elk received a scholarship and completed a BA from the University of Minnesota, Duluth, USA. Back in Europe, she obtained a BA in French language and literature (University of Geneva, Switzerland) as well as a translator’s diploma. After 4 years working in West Africa and visits to South America, she returned to Geneva to obtain an MA in development studies. She is fluent in English, French, and Dutch and has working knowledge of Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and German. Ms. Allain was a co-founder of IBFAN (1979) and the coordinator of IBFAN Europe (1980-1984). In 1984, she moved to Penang, Malaysia, and IBFAN work soon took over as a full-time job. She was instrumental in developing the Code Documentation Centre (1985) and by 1991 it became a foundation (ICDC) registered in the Netherlands. Subsequently, the Centre has trained over 2,000 officials from 148 countries about the International Code, making it the world’s top International Code implementation institution. Among her many other education and advocacy activities, Ms. Allain was a co-founder of WABA (1990) and for many years has been a consultant with UNICEF and WHO’s Western Pacific Regional Office on International Code implementation and monitoring. In this interview she provides a firsthand account of how most of the major global breastfeeding protection efforts influencing our current situation came into being. (This is a verbatim interview: MA = Maryse Arendt; AA = Annelies Allain.)

Wing asymmetry was used to measure the possible stress which could be created when we feed honeybee colony with cane and beet sugar syrup in comparison with feeding with honey (control). For this purpose, 25 traits of wing venation pattern on left and right forewing of drone honey bees were used. The results indicated that directional asymmetry (DA) was not related to the type of feeding. Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) differed between characters and between feeding treatments, but no interaction was found between them. The individual characters were combined and analyzed as composite fluctuating asymmetry (CFA) to maximize the probability of detecting (FA)-stress relationship when it exists. The result showed that (CFA) of vein angels were significantly higher in sugar-feeding than in honey-feeding colonies.

Presently, there is solid evidence that breast-feeding is ideal for the nutrition, harmonious physical and psychosocial development of the infants. This postulate is confirmed not only by modern scientific data, but also by the entire history of humanity from ancient times. However, history also shows that at all times there were various factors besides medical ones that prevent the appropriate and widespread breastfeeding of infants. These factors were both religious and social, and even political; they changed from one era to another and from one nation to another, and unfortunately, take place in modern society. They often had a character of prejudice and reflected on the health state of both infants and their mothers. This article presents a historical overview of the factors preventing breastfeeding, which can help the paediatrician understand the current causes of the insufficient prevalence of natural feeding.

Mosquito and tick feeding activity represent a key threat for humans, livestock, pets and wildlife worldwide. Rearing these vectors in laboratory conditions is extremely important to investigate basic facets of their biology, vector competence, new control strategies, as well as mechanisms of pesticide resistance. However, the use of animals or humans to provide blood for hematophagous arthropod feeding poses a strict limit to these researches, due to the accidental transmission of diseases, ethical problems concerning animal welfare, as well as expensive and time-consuming animal rearing procedures. The use of devices to artificially feed arthropod vectors can importantly leverage progresses in parasitology and entomology. The aim of this review is to summarize current knowledge about artificial feeding of mosquitoes and ticks, focusing on key concepts and case studies about the design and fabrication of blood feeding devices. From a technical standpoint, the literature analyzed here showed little standardization of materials used for fabricating membrane interfaces, as well as in the strategy used to heat the "biomimetic host". In addition, a lack of uniform methods to design an architecture merging complex and realistic cues with an easy-to-assemble approach have been found. Some commercial products are available, but they are quite expensive, thus hard to reach for many laboratories, especially in developing countries. An important challenge for future research is represented by the introduction of automation and bioinspired engineered solutions in these devices, improving the effectiveness of blood-feeding systems by increasing their host-mimicking features. Automation can reduce labor costs and provide interesting solutions - in line with the 3R principle "reduce, replace and refine" - aimed to minimize the employ of experimental animals in research.

Many studies have discussed the relationship between breastfeeding and certain social, psychological and demographic variables.The aim of this study was to determine the effect of social, psychological and demographic variables on breastfeeding among Kuwaiti mothers.The total of 712 married women were selected who answered a questionnaire. Questions were asked about duration of breastfeeding and bottle feeding, degree of spousal relationship, religious sect and background. Religiosity, family stability and general health self-rating scales were used.Women who came from urban roots and consanguineous marriages had a higher mean duration of breastfeeding than those who came from Bedouin roots and nonconsanguineous marriages. There was a significant difference among the three maternal age groups in the duration of breastfeeding. A significant relationship was found between the duration of breastfeeding and all social, psychological and demographic variables except general health. Correlations were found between the duration of breastfeeding and maternal and paternal education, maternal occupation, years of marriage, age at marriage, family stability scale, self-esteem scale, and socioeconomic variables. The duration of artificial feeding, number of abortions, degree of religiosity, family stability scale, age, and socioeconomic scale related to the duration of the mother's breastfeeding.Education plays an important role in affecting women's health in general and breastfeeding practice in particular.المتغيرات الاجتماعية والنفسية والسكانية المتعلقة بالرضاعة الطبيعية بين الأمهات في دولة الكويت.يعقوب الكندري، رمضان عبد الستار أحمد.ناقش الكثير من الدراسات العلاقة بين الرضاعة الطبيعية وبعض المتغيرات الاجتماعية والنفسية والسكانية.الهدف من هذه الدراسة هو تحديد أثر المتغيرات الاجتماعية والنفسية والسكانية على الرضاعة الطبيعية بين الأمهات في دولة الكويت.تم اختيار إجمالي 712 امرأة من النساء المتزوجات للإجابة على استبيان الدراسة. وتضمن الاستبيان أسئلة حول مدة الرضاعة الطبيعية، والإطعام بالزجاجة، ودرجة القرابة بين الزوجين، والطائفة الدينية والمعلومات الأساسية، مع استخدام مقاييس للقياس الذاتي لكل من الالتزام الديني والاستقرار العائلي والحالة الصحية العامة.كان متوسط مدة الرضاعة الطبيعية لدى النساء المنحدرات من الجذور الحضرية ومتزوجات من أقاربهن أطول مما لدى اللواتي انحدرن من جذور بدوية ولم يكنّ متزوجات من أقاربهن. وكان هناك فرق يُعْتَدّ به في فترة الرضاعة الطبيعية بين المجموعات العمرية الثلاث للأمهات. كما كان هناك ارتباط يُعْتَدّ به إحصائياً بين مدة الرضاعة الطبيعية وبين جميع المتغيرات الاجتماعية والنفسية والسكانية باستثناء الحالة الصحية العامة. تم العثور على الارتباطات بين مدة الرضاعة الطبيعية وتعليم الأمهات والآباء، وعمل الأم، وسن الزواج، وتاريخ الزواج، ومقياس استقرار الأسرة، ومقياس احترام الذات، والمتغيرات الاجتماعية والاقتصادية. ويرتبط كل من مدة التغذية بالمستحضرات الاصطناعية، وعدد مرات الإجهاض، ودرجة الالتزام الديني، ومقياس استقرار الأسرة، والعمر، وسلم القياس الاجتماعي الاقتصادي بمدة الرضاعة الطبيعية.يؤدي التعليم دوراً هاماً في التأثير على صحة المرأة بشكل عام وعلى ممارسة الرضاعة الطبيعية على وجه الخصوص.Variables sociales, psychologiques et démographiques associées à l’allaitement chez les mères koweïtiennes.De nombreuses études ont déjà examiné les rapports entre l’allaitement au sein et certaines variables sociales, psychologiques et démographiques.L’objectif de la présente étude était de déterminer l’impact des variables sociales, psychologiques et démographiques sur l’allaitement chez les mères koweïtiennes.On a sélectionné 712 femmes mariées au total qui ont été priées de répondre à un questionnaire. Les questions portaient sur la durée de l’allaitement et de l’alimentation au biberon, le lien de parenté entre les époux, l’appartenance religieuse et le milieu. On a utilisé des échelles autorapportées de religiosité, de stabilité familiale et de santé générale.Les femmes issues de milieux urbains et vivant au sein d’un mariage consanguin ont fait état de durées d’allaitement moyennes plus longues que celles issues de racines bédouines et vivant dans un mariage non consanguin. Des différences significatives sur le plan de la durée d’allaitement entre les trois groupes d’âge maternels ont été notées. Un lien significatif a été constaté entre la durée de l’allaitement et toutes les variables sociales, psychologiques et démographiques, à l’exception de la santé générale. Des corrélations ont été établies entre la durée d’allaitement au sein et les niveaux d’éducation de la mère et du père, la profession de la mère, l’année du mariage, l’âge au moment du mariage, l’échelle de stabilité de la famille, l’échelle d’estime personnelle et les variables socio-économiques. La durée d’alimentation au biberon, le nombre d’avortements, le degré de religiosité, l’échelle de stabilité de la famille, l’âge et l’échelle socio-économique étaient liés à la durée de l’allaitement au sein par la mère.L’éducation affecte de façon importante la santé des femmes en général et la pratique de l’allaitement au sein en particulier..