90,000 Babies In US Mistreated During First Year of Life
By MedHeadlines • Apr 4th, 2008 • Category: CDC, Children's Health, Family, Health Insurance, Lifestyle, Prevention, Substance AbuseResearchers for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have reported the findings of a study that identifies more than 90,000 infants who were neglected or received poor parental care during their first year of life. In about a third of the cases, the poor treatment came during the first week of life.
While quick to identify the difference between abuse and neglect, the CDC researchers suggest the problem may stem from a lack of health insurance and perhaps a mother’s drug use, although no studies have yet been conducted that pinpoint the source, or reasons behind, the neglected babies. Neglect is defined as lack of access to a healthcare provider and failure to meet the fundamental needs of an infant, such as feeding, clothing, and adequate shelter.
The study was conducted during the 2006 federal fiscal year, which ran from October 1, 2005, through September 30, 2006. Researchers gleaned information from a national database utilized by child protection agencies spanning 45 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Healthcare professionals reported about 65% of the neglected infants to children’s protective service agencies, while family members, friends, neighbors, and law enforcement personnel reported the remainder.
Of the 90,000-plus infants described as neglected for study purposes, representing 1 out of every 50 babies born during the study period, only 13% (almost 12,000) of them were identified as physically abused. The study also revealed 500 deaths due to neglect or abuse in infants younger than 1 year of age. Most cases of neglect were reported within the first two days of a baby’s life, when blood tests of mother and baby revealed a mother’s drug use during pregnancy.
Neglect of an infant doesn’t necessarily place him or her in a life-threatening situation but it can lead to illness and improper development. Researchers suggest many cases of neglect may be simply untrained new parents learning how to become better parents, but at the baby’s expense nevertheless, during the learning period.
The study is said to identify the need for improved prenatal care, training on parenting skills, and drug abuse intervention programs during pregnancy.
The US Administration for Children and Families collaborated with the CDC in the study, the results of which are published in the CDC publication, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Wow, the government got to do something about it.
They do, but they spend so much time investigating good parents because their neighbor doesn’t like them and reports them for something make believe, that they don’t have time to investigate actual situations.
Uhm, this is WHY you need sex education in school. This is also another reason why women (I’m willing to bet 95% of these parents are against abortion and are informed about pre-natal care). This case study is also another argument for nationalized health insurance. Young women - women who are NOT ready to be parents, but are too guilt-ridden to seek out an abortion - end up having babies they are NOT capable of taking care.
When you’ve got people like Britney Spears wanna-be’s having babies, you end up with children who are born for the sake of going to full term with a pregnancy.
Having a baby requires a mountain pile of money, health insurance, stability (emotional, financial, and physical), and shouldn’t be a burden placed upon young women who’ve been guilted into having a baby they are NOT prepared to keep.
This is exactly the kind of situation you get yourself into when you treat motherhood as something you assume will be easy.
And the same kids who grow up to be rebillious to the society they live in end up in jail or are send to Iraq to fullfill what shit their parents gave them to the world in turn