Infant sleeping and feeding patterning: A cultural perspective on maternal practices

Abstract

<p class="a"><strong>Aim:</strong> To compare practices of Israeli native-born and soviet immigrant mothers in relation to the sleeping and feeding routines of their three, six and twelve month old infants.</p> <p class="a"><strong>Methods:</strong> Seventy mothers of infants up to the age of twenty-four months, half native born and half immigrant from the Former Soviet Union (FSU), reported sleep and feeding patterning for their infants at three, six and twelve months. Mothers were matched by socio-demographic characteristics of age, marital status and education. Infant’s age and gender were matched as well. Issues addressed included feeding method, adherence to feeding and bedtime schedules, age of infant when mother return to work outside the home.</p> <p class="a"><strong>Results:</strong> FSU mothers share a similar feeding and sleeping pattern for their six and twelve month old infants, while native born mothers keep diverse and flexible feeding routines.</p> <strong>Conclusions:</strong> We suggest that maternal practices reflect cultural norms. In the case of Soviet culture, a developmental-<br /> educational approach emphasizes the parental role in modifying and adjusting child’s behavior, while Israeli culture encourages parental responsiveness to the individual child’s specific needs

Infant Feeding Practices and Nutritional Status of Children of Less Than 1 Year

“…In another study the average age was found 14.7± 6.0 months, which is also higher than the current study 9. It was observed in this study that male (61.5%) was predominant, where male to female ratio was 1.6: 1. Similar observations were also made by Khan et al, Ulak et al, Sarid and Shraga and Mushaphi et al 8,9,10,11 In this study exclusive breast feeding was found in 19 (86.4%) cases under 6 months age group and in 3 (10.0%) cases in more than 6 months age group. The national figure of EBF is 64% whereas in this study EBF rate was 86.4%, which is higher than national data.…”

Training 3-Month-Old Babies for the Future

“…Immigrants from the FSU are characterized by a complex hybrid identity where the components “Jewish” and“ Russian” eventually join the component “Israeli.” During their years spent in Israel, immigrants may develop political and economic affiliations to Israel while their basic cultural existence may stay Russian (Lisiza, 2008). Indeed, some Soviet-Russian norms and values regarding infant care and child rearing are seen among the 1.5-generation FSU immigrants who maintain some Soviet infant sleeping and feeding patterns (Sarid & Shraga, 2013). However, undoubtedly, the process of child rearing is, to a certain extent, challenged by the host culture.…”