Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Sep 10;14(5):501-525.
doi: 10.1080/15250000903144173. Epub 2009 Sep 1.

The Mother-Infant Feeding Relationship Across the First Year and the Development of Feeding Difficulties in Low-Risk Premature Infants

Dalia Silberstein  1 , Ruth Feldman  2 , Judith M Gardner  3 , Bernard Z Karmel  3 , Jacob Kuint  4 , Ronny Geva  2
Affiliations

The Mother-Infant Feeding Relationship Across the First Year and the Development of Feeding Difficulties in Low-Risk Premature Infants

Dalia Silberstein et al. Infancy. .

Abstract

Although feeding problems are common during infancy and are typically accompanied by relational difficulties, little research observed the mother-infant feeding relationship across the first year as an antecedent to the development of feeding difficulties. We followed 76 low-risk premature infants and their mothers from the transition to oral feeding in the neonatal period to the end of the first year. Prior to hospital discharge, microlevel patterns of maternal touch and gaze were coded during feeding and nonfeeding interactions, global patterns of maternal adaptation were assessed, and infants' neurobehavioral status was tested. Psychomotor development was evaluated at 4 months. At 1 year, feeding difficulties were determined on the basis of maternal interview and direct observations of feeding interactions. Mothers of infants who exhibited feeding difficulties at 1 year showed less affectionate touch and gaze during nonfeeding interactions and more gaze aversion and lower adaptability during feeding interactions already in the neonatal period. Infants with feeding difficulties demonstrated poorer psychomotor performance at 4 months. Feeding interactions of infants with feeding difficulties at 1 year were characterized by higher maternal intrusiveness, lower infant involvement, and greater infant withdrawal. Less maternal affectionate touch and lower maternal adaptation in the neonatal period, poor infant psychomotor skills, and higher maternal intrusiveness and lower infant involvement at 1 year predicted feeding difficulties. The findings underscore the role of the relational components across the first year in the development of feeding difficulties.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Als, H. (1986). A synactive model of behavioral organization: Framework for the assessment of neurobehavioral development in the premature infant and for support of infants and parents in the neonatal intensive care environment. Physical and Occupational Therapy in Pediatrics, 6, 3-55.
    1. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. (1997). Practice parameters for the psychiatric assessment of infants and toddlers (0-36 months). Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 36, 21S-36S.
    1. Barratt, M. S., Roach, M. A., & Leavitt, L. A. (1992). Early channels of mother-infant communication: Preterm and term infants. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 33, 1193-1204.
    1. Bayley, N. (1993). Bayley Scales of Infant Development: Administering and scoring manual. New York: Psychological Corporation.
    1. Belsky, J., Rovine, M., & Taylor, D. C. (1984). The Pennsylvania infant and family development project II: The development of reciprocal interaction in the mother-infant dyad. Child Development, 48, 706-717.

LinkOut - more resources