Children's Caregiving and Growth in Northwestern Tanzania: Limited Evidence That Support From Specific Caregivers Is Associated With Better Growth.

ABSTRACT: Receiving care from individuals other than one's mother (i.e., allomothering) is a universal aspect of raising children, but whether and how such care impacts children's health remains subject to debate. Existing studies in low-income societies largely use broad proxies for caregiving behaviors rather than measuring childcare activities, which may mask variation in allomothering and, thus, its impact on children's health. Using data collected to address these limitations we measure, for 808 children under 5 years in Northwestern Tanzania: (a) Maternal residence, (b) receipt of two childcare types from seven caregivers; and (c) children's growth (height-for-age and weight-for-height). We predict that (1) allomothering will be beneficial for children's growth and (2) benefits of allomotherin

SUBMITTER: Hassan A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11947294 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature