Urban survival strategies and infant mortality in Paramaribo, Suriname

The author examines the relationship between infant mortality and urban social structure using data collected in a lower class urban neighborhood in Paramaribo, Suriname, between 1979 and 1982. "The main results of this investigation point to an increase in infant mortality during the past years among a sample of 100 families in the neighbourhood. The analysis also shows that the rise in infant mortality was mainly due to a shortening of the duration of breastfeeding of the babies. This change in feeding practices in its turn, resulted from a shift in the survival strategies of the mothers associated with conflicting interests concerning land use in the inner city of Paramaribo." (SUMMARY IN FRE AND ITA)