Reducing hospital bottle use is readily achievable by health system action; increasing the time mothers spend with their infants is more difficult. A relevant finding was that more mothers were unaware of breastfeeding's maternal benefits than those who were unaware of its benefits for the baby. If mothers were made more aware of the maternal benefits, an increasing number might insist on being the main caregiver and take care of their children for longer periods of time.

IntroductionStudies in high-income countries suggest that mortality is related to economic cycles, but few studies have examined how fluctuations in the economy influence mortality in low- and middle-income countries. We exploit regional variations in gross domestic product per capita (GDPpc) over the period 1980–2010 in Colombia to examine how changes in economic output relate to adult mortality.MethodsData on the number of annual deaths at ages 20 years and older (n = 3,506,600) from mortality registries, disaggregated by age groups, sex and region, were linked to population counts for the period 1980–2010. We used region fixed effect models to examine whether changes in regional GDPpc were associated with changes in mortality. We carried out separate analyses for the periods 1980–1995 and 2000–2010 as well as by sex, distinguishing three age groups: 20–44 (predominantly young working adults), 45–64 (middle aged working adults), and 65+ (senior, predominantly retired individuals).ResultsThe association between regional economic conditions and mortality varied by period and age groups. From 1980 to 1995, increases in GDPpc were unrelated to mortality at ages 20 to 64, but they were associated with reductions in mortality for senior men. In contrast, from 2000 to 2010, changes in GDPpc were not associated with old age mortality, while an increase in GDPpc was associated with a decline in mortality at ages 20–44 years. Analyses restricted to regions with high registration coverage yielded similar albeit less precise estimates for most sub-groups.ConclusionsThe relationship between business cycles and mortality varied by period and age in Colombia. Most notably, mortality shifted from being acyclical to being countercyclical for males aged 20–44, while it shifted from being countercyclical to being acyclical for males aged 65+.

The new methodology applying for burden of disease study (GBD 2010) is difficult to completely reproduce in Colombia. This paper presents the results of partial use of this methodology to estimate the components years lost due to premature death (YLLs) and lived with disability (YLDs). Redistribution of useless codes produces significant increases in some causes of death, which are preferable to deal with an analysis of causes of death with 15,6 % of useless codes that would provide little or no statistical information. Ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular and hypertensive heart disease events cause the highest risk of mortality rate (164,2 per 100,000). Assaults by firearms and sharp objects, self-inflicted injuries and those caused by motorcycles and four-wheeled vehicles on the road, are the first cause of YLLs per 1000 (34,3). Skin diseases such as dermatitis, erythemas, burns on exposure to sunlight, pediculosis and pityriasis, cause the greatest risk of YLDs per 1000 (51,3). This group of skin diseases are also the leading cause of DALYs per 1000 (51,4). The departments with the highest rates of mortality and YLLs for Group I (communicable diseases) are Guainía, Amazonas, Vaupés, Cauca, Vichada, Putumayo, Nariño, Chocó, Cordoba, La Guajira, Guaviare y Caquetá and with the lower mortality coverage.

The burden of disease from cancer in Santander in 2005 was mainly due to premature death YLL in both sexes and all age-groups.

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