In 1983, the Vice Secretary-General of United Nations Children＇s Fund （UNICEF）, Karl Knutsson, visited Japan and remarked that the method of reducing the Japanese infant mortality rate （IMR） was a model for every...In 1983, the Vice Secretary-General of United Nations Children＇s Fund （UNICEF）, Karl Knutsson, visited Japan and remarked that the method of reducing the Japanese infant mortality rate （IMR） was a model for every country. In the early twentieth century, Osaka and at the time of UNICEF＇s plan in the 1980s, diarrhea was the cause of most babies＇ deaths, so we consider infant nutrition to be the central issue. The average IMR was 155.4 in rural areas in Japan, and IMR in Osaka city was 231.6 during 1906 to 1910. IMR in Osaka city might have been influenced by somewhat negative urban factors, which we can call the ＂urban penalty＂. Dr. Hiroshi Maruyama discovered the a-index in 1938. The a-index represents infant mortality number divided by neonatal mortality number. After all, Maruyama set one month after birth as a boundary to divide endogenous and exogenous. The a-index shows a qualitative measure of infant mortality. Post neonatal mortality was increased due to acquired diseases such as diarrhea, pneumonia, and beriberi. This shows that the effect of the urban penalty was raising the a-index. The a-index of the industrial zones shows that bad maternal conditions affected endogenous factors. Most mothers suffered from a deficiency of breast-feeding capability.展开更多
文摘In 1983, the Vice Secretary-General of United Nations Children＇s Fund （UNICEF）, Karl Knutsson, visited Japan and remarked that the method of reducing the Japanese infant mortality rate （IMR） was a model for every country. In the early twentieth century, Osaka and at the time of UNICEF＇s plan in the 1980s, diarrhea was the cause of most babies＇ deaths, so we consider infant nutrition to be the central issue. The average IMR was 155.4 in rural areas in Japan, and IMR in Osaka city was 231.6 during 1906 to 1910. IMR in Osaka city might have been influenced by somewhat negative urban factors, which we can call the ＂urban penalty＂. Dr. Hiroshi Maruyama discovered the a-index in 1938. The a-index represents infant mortality number divided by neonatal mortality number. After all, Maruyama set one month after birth as a boundary to divide endogenous and exogenous. The a-index shows a qualitative measure of infant mortality. Post neonatal mortality was increased due to acquired diseases such as diarrhea, pneumonia, and beriberi. This shows that the effect of the urban penalty was raising the a-index. The a-index of the industrial zones shows that bad maternal conditions affected endogenous factors. Most mothers suffered from a deficiency of breast-feeding capability.
