Infant Health

The health status of infants is a clear indicator of the health a society can expect for generations to come. The health of an infant begins before conception and includes a healthy and prepared biological mother, as well as an environment that optimizes infant health. With this in mind, Maternal and Child Health (MCH) encompasses much more than healthy babies; it entails creating ideal environments for promoting intentional pregnancies, lowering infant mortality and morbidity rates, advocating for the needs of infants and their caregivers, and raising healthy generations of infants, children, and adults.

Overall, there have been great achievements in the health of infants. MCH efforts have come a long way with infant mortality rates dropping from 150 in 1900 to 7 in recent years. (Additional information about infant health trends can be found at: March of Dimes Peristats ). However, current rates fall quite short of the Healthy People (HP) 2010 targets. These HP 2019 targets aim to achieve rates of 2.9 per 1,000 for neonatal infant mortality and 1.2 per 1,000 for postneonatal infant mortality. In order to reach the ambitious HP 2010 goals, infant mortality is being approached from a variety of avenues. One such approach includes a nation-wide “Back to Sleep” campaign, which advocates placing infants on their backs to sleep, that is directly responsible for decreasing the incidence of sudden infant death syndrome, otherwise known as crib death. .

Programming

There are numerous programs that exist throughout the nation that work to promote and ensure infant health, including:

Early Intervention:

•  MDH Early Childhood Intervention programs
•  MDH Follow Along Program: Minnesota knows the value of addressing infants with special health care needs in their earliest stages of development and the state has initiated various programs such as the Follow Along Program.

Immunization Programs :

Currently Healthy People 2010 objectives maintain a goal of 80% immunization coverage of 19-35month olds. Immunizations are a cost-effective way of preventing several devastating diseases such as polio, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, measles, mumps, rubella, Haemophilus influenza type B. Children living at or below the federal poverty line tend to have fewer rates of immunization and many programs focus on such populations. More information about these programs can be found at: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/

Infant Mortality Initiatives :

•  MDH Infant Mortality Reduction Initiative: The state of Minnesota has been paving the way in reducing infant mortality and has made a number of initiatives to impact this population.
•  National Healthy Start Association

Newborn Screening

•  CDC Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Program
•  Medline Plus: Newborn Screening

Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) :

WIC targets low-income and nutritionally at risk populations, with particular focus on pregnant women, breastfeeding women, postpartum women, and infants and children up to age 5. WIC provides a wide gamut of services such as nutrition supplements, nutrition education and counseling, as well as screening and referrals to health, welfare, and other social services. More information can be found at: www.fns.usda.gov/wic/aboutwic/

Policies

Below is a list of resources related to local and national policies that affect the health of infants:

•  Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grants Minnesota's Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grant helps ensure the health of all of Minnesota 's mothers and children, especially those with special health care needs or those individuals who are low-income and/or racial and ethnic minorities.

•  Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act : Bill # S.1858

•  March of Dimes Advocacy Action Center: up-to-date information on current infant health-related policies. For more information about this organization and related issues please visit their website.

Research

The health status of an infant is often correlated with health status and lifestyle behaviors in early pregnancy. Addressing the risk factors that lead to poor infant health before conception has dramatic potential to increase the overall health status of a society's infant population. Therefore, educational campaigns and programs are increasingly including preconception elements within their general formats. With this in mind, the University of Minnesota's Center for Leadership Education in Maternal and Child Health co-sponsors an annual Preconception Care Conference: Lifespan Approach to Reproductive Health to provide training and resources for local and regional public health workers.

University of Minnesota Involvement

Faculty

• Melissa Avery, PhD, RN, CNM, FAAN, FACNM : Breastfeeding
• Laura Duckett PhD, MPH, RN : breastfeeding and infant health; infant growth; maternal, infant and family health during the first postpartum year; parent-infant attachment
• Wendy Hellerstedt, PhD , MPH .: Birth outcomes for underserved women, pregnancy intention, perinatal and reproductive health, parity and infant Health, Principal Investigator – National Children's Study
• Linda Lindeke PhD, RN, CNP : high-risk infant follow-up, cognitive development of infants and children
• Jamie S Stang, PhD, MPH, RD : nutrition and weight status in pregnancy
• Patricia McGovern, PhD, MPH : occupational health policy and program evaluation including women's use of family medical leave policies in association with their postpartum health, Principal Investigator – National Children's Study

Courses :

• Introduction to Infant Mental Health
• PubH 6605 Reproductive and Perinatal Health
• PubH 6902 Maternal and Infant Nutrition