Why is infant Mortality in US worse than Morocco or Costa Rica?

by hamsterbait 31 Replies latest jw friends

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  hamsterbait

  Why are there so many premature births?

  Why are the deaths of the premature higher in the US?

  Why is the mortality for African Americans babies more than 2.5% higher than for others ( 5% as opposed to 13%)? Why is the highest rate in southern states?

  Why is infant mortality RISING in Mississippi?

  The US has one of the worst rates of baby deaths in the western world.

  Billions spent to kill citizens of other countries so babies at home can die as free people before they are one year old.

  I just throw my hands up. Can anybody justify or at least explain it away? C'mon former wintesses - those skills should be used!!

  HB
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  BurnTheShips

  I don't have a good answer. I am seriously considerint having our next baby delivered in C.R. We thought about doing the same with our first child.

  This would get us residency priviledges. It is such a beautiful country. Part of me really wants to live there.

  Burn
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  Sad emo

  Can you give us a link to some statistics so we can pick 'em apart

  A few ideas off the top of my head - maybe not all infant mortalities are reported in Morocco given the nomadic/tribal culture of a significant part of the population.

  Possibly the same sort of thing in Costa Rica? If they never make it to a hospital/medical centre, they might not be recorded?

  Higher incidence of sickle cell anaemia maybe?

  Just another idea - forgive my dense question, but is it more difficult to spot a 'blue baby' in African-American babies? Perhaps if it is, this also means it takes longer to spot a problem in newborns?
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  5go

  The US has one of the worst rates of baby deaths in the western world.

  Yet we pay more for it to boot.
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  Thegoodgirl

  I may be wrong, but I'm thinking the reason is that U.S. babies are able to survive very early births (eg 28 wks, 30 wks) that may not happen in other countries.

  SO our newborn premature babies are MORE fragile than those in other countries (other countries' babies maybe are able to be born and survive starting at, say 33 wks, 34 wks.)

  Thus more of U.S. babies die because they were more fragile to begin with.

  And I could be totally wrong about this, but I thought that if the baby dies within so many hours of birth, it is counted differently than a baby that dies say, a month after birth.
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  DaCheech

  alot of pregnant women in the US gain twice the weight you're supposed to gain during pregnancy
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  frankiespeakin

  I feel the US government owes us taxpayers a big fat refund, on money wasted on the military, and not getting our moneys worth in health care, or some other justifiably worhty social benifit. I smell a big tax revolt comming from many,, as our eyes open. Sorta like the movie "V for Vendetta" saying unitedly "we the people ain't gonna take the shit you pile on us anymore" I see it comming,
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  SixofNine

  Because most Americans are brain dead idiots who proudly but ignorantly proclaim their country *the best*.

  Pride kills.
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  Odrade

  Good girl, true. There are explanations out there regarding infant mortality that shed light on the statistics. In the USA, a baby born alive at 21-22 weeks is routinely put on life support. Many of them do not survive, thus becoming part of the mortality statistic. In less developed nations, the child that is born that prematurely is considered a "miscarriage," and as such, is not counted in those statistics.

  More revelatory would be infant mortality statistics that are specific, for example: infant death due to homicide, illness, malnutrition, premature birth complications, congenital defects, etc. Then a straight-line comparison could be made to other country's statistics that would give a truer picture.
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  Xena

  We aren't the best? Thanks for destroying another ideal Six.

  I don't really see the need to compare to other countries so I won't address that. What I do know is the we have crappy health care, to many underage mothers and a society which instills no personal accountability for any of our actions. That IMO contributes to the infant mortality in the US. What do do about it? Education, better health care and people having to take responsiblity for their own actions. Not likely to happen though. Not soon anyway.