Mexico: Diarrhea in Children Under Three Years Old,1989
In 1989, CIET carried out a survey of 3,603 children under three years old in 43 sentinel sites to evaluate the prevalence and risk factors of diarrhea. Some 34% of children under three years old had suffered from diarrhea in the two weeks prior to the survey. Questions asked concerning risk factors revealed that 50% of the families kept pigs in the home, 58% had no lavatory facilities and 49% had no running water in the home. A child who drank unpurified water had a three times greater risk of getting diarrhea than a child fed purified water. Half of mothers either gave less or no food to their sick child during the episode of diarrhea and less than half of them gave their child extra liquids. Those children whose parents reduced the quantity of liquids given, had a 50% greater risk of a prolonged case of diarrhea. An unvaccinated child has an 80% greater risk of suffering from diarrhea than a vaccinated child.