Editing Infant mortality (section)

=== Culture ===
High rates of infant mortality occur in developing countries where financial and material resources are scarce, and where there is a high tolerance for infant deaths. There are a number of developing countries where certain cultural situations, such as favoring male babies over female babies, are the norm.<ref name="Andrews" /> In developing countries such as Brazil, infant mortality rates are commonly not recorded due to not registering for death certificates.<ref name="Nations">{{Cite journal |vauthors=Nations MK, Amaral ML |year=1991 |title=Flesh, Blood, Souls, and Households: Cultural Validity in Mortality Inquiry |journal=Medical Anthropology Quarterly |volume=5 |issue=3 |pages=204–220 |doi=10.1525/maq.1991.5.3.02a00020}}</ref> Another cultural reason for infant mortality, such as what is happening in Ghana, is that "besides the obvious, like rutted roads, there are prejudices against wives or newborns leaving the house."<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 29, 2012 |title=Ghana: A grant meant to curb infant mortality focuses on getting mothers to the hospital |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/30/health/gates-foundation-backs-hospital-transportation-for-expectant-mothers.html |url-access=subscription |website=The New York Times |vauthors=McNeil D}}</ref> This makes it even more difficult for pregnant women and newborns to get the needed treatment that is available to them.

In the United States cultural influences and lifestyle habits can account for some infant deaths. Examples include [[teenage pregnancy]], [[obesity]], [[diabetes]], and [[smoking]]. All are possible causes of premature births, which constitute the second-highest cause of infant mortality.<ref name="lag">{{Cite web |date=May 2, 2012 |title=U.S. Lags in Global Measure of Premature Births |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/03/health/us-lags-in-global-measure-of-preterm-births.html |url-access=subscription |website=The New York Times |vauthors=McNeil D |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230410044313/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/03/health/us-lags-in-global-measure-of-preterm-births.html |archive-date= Apr 10, 2023 }}</ref> According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, "the post neonatal mortality risk (28 to 364 days) was highest among continental Puerto Ricans" compared to non-Hispanic babies. Ethnic differences are accompanied by a higher prevalence of behavioral risk factors and sociodemographic challenges that each ethnic group faces.<ref name="MacDorman 2009" />

====Male sex favoritism====
Historically, males have had higher infant mortality rates than females, with the difference being dependent on environmental, social, and economic conditions. More specifically, males are biologically more vulnerable to infections and conditions associated with prematurity and development. Before 1970, the reasons for male infant mortality were infections and chronic degenerative diseases. However, since 1970, male sex favoritism in certain cultures has led to a decrease in the infant mortality gap between males and females. Also, medical advances have resulted in a greater effect on the survival rate of male infants than female infants, due to the initial high infant mortality rate of males.<ref name="Dreven">{{Cite journal |vauthors=Drevenstedt GL, Crimmins EM, Vasunilashorn S, Finch CE |date=April 2008 |title=The rise and fall of excess male infant mortality |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |volume=105 |issue=13 |pages=5016–21 |bibcode=2008PNAS..105.5016D |doi=10.1073/pnas.0800221105 |pmc=2278210 |pmid=18362357 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Genetic components result in newborn females being at a biological advantage when it comes to surviving their first birthday, versus newborn males, who have lower chances of surviving infancy. As infant mortality rates decreased globally, the gender ratios changed from males being at a biological disadvantage to females facing a societal disadvantage.<ref name="Dreven" /> Some developing nations have social and cultural patterns that favor boys over girls for their future earning potential. A country's ethnic composition, [[Monoethnicity|homogeneous]] or [[Polyethnicity|heterogeneous]], can explain social attitudes and practices. Heterogeneous levels are a strong predictor of infant mortality.<ref name="Fuse" />{{Verify source|date=July 2023}}

====Birth spacing====
[[File:Total Fertility Rate Map by Country.svg|thumb|right|upright=1.35|Map of countries by fertility rate, according to the [[Population Reference Bureau]]]]
Birth spacing is the time between births. Births spaced at least three years apart are associated with the lowest rate of mortality. The longer the interval between births, the lower the risk of having complications at birth, or of infant, childhood, or [[maternal mortality]].<ref name="Norton" /><ref name="Rutstein">{{Cite journal |vauthors=Rutstein SO |date=April 2005 |title=Effects of preceding birth intervals on neonatal, infant and under-five years mortality and nutritional status in developing countries: evidence from the demographic and health surveys |journal=International Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics |volume=89 |issue=Suppl 1 |pages=S7-24 |doi=10.1016/j.ijgo.2004.11.012 |pmid=15820369 |s2cid=37743580}}</ref> Conception less than six months after a birth, abortion, or miscarriage is associated with higher rates of preterm births and low birth weight, and also increases the chances of [[Chronic condition|chronic]] and general undernutrition. In 55 developing countries 57% of reported pregnancies had birth spaces of less than three years, and 26% of less than two years. While only 20% of new parents report wanting another birth within two years, only 40% are taking steps like [[family planning]] to achieve this.<ref name="Norton" />

Unplanned pregnancies and birth intervals of less than twenty-four months are known to correlate with low birth weights and delivery complications. Also, mothers who are already small in stature tend to deliver smaller than average babies, perpetuating a cycle of being [[underweight]].<ref name="Andrews" /><ref name="Norton" /><ref name="Rutstein" />