The Impact of Maternal Employment on Health of Children Under Two Years Old

Abstract

Introduction: Women's labor force participation has risen around the globe in the past few decades, maternal employment can affect children's well-being through multiple channels, including income effects, decisions about health inputs, and time spent with children. Overall, women's employment affects child health widely. Aim of work: To study the impact of maternal employment on breastfeeding practice, nutritional status, and motor development of children under two years old. Materials and methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted during the period from May 2018 to December 2019, on 400 children under two years old who were attending a Pediatrics Clinic or Vaccination Unit at the Primary Health Care Centers at Shebin Alkom district, Menoufia governorate. The children who fulfilled inclusion criteria were involved in the study, and their mothers were interviewed using an interview questionnaire. Physical examination and complete blood count were done for children. Results: Working mothers represented 25% of the studied sample. There were statistically significant differences between employed and unemployed mothers as regards education, income, and socioeconomic standard. There were statistically significant differences between the studied groups in breastfeeding practices; exclusive breastfeeding, frequency and duration of breastfeeding were lower among employed mothers, the rate of hospitalization and different infections, i.e., gastroenteritis, otitis media, and repeated throat infection, were significantly higher among children of employed mothers compared to children of unemployed mothers (p-value ˂0.05). There was no statistically significant difference between children of employed and unemployed mothers as regard motor development, dentation, weight for age, length for age, and weight for length,