Background: The presence of chronic illnesses in both a mother and a child poses a significant challenge for mothers in managing these conditions, yet how maternal attitudes adapt to dual illness remains poorly understood. This study aims to explore parenting styles in families dealing with mother–child chronic illnesses. Methods: Mothers of children aged 2–6 were recruited from three pediatric clinics and categorized based on the health status of both the mother and the child. Data collection included case files and the Parental Attitude Scale (PAS), which assessed democratic, authoritarian, overprotective, and permissive attitudes. The interaction between mother–child health status and higher levels of parental subscales was analyzed using the chi-square test. Multiple logistic regression analysis was then performed to evaluate this interaction, controlling for confounding baseline characteristics. Results: In total, 878 mother–child pairs were included. Mothers exhibited varying attitudes based on education, employment, and the child’s age. Chronic illness in both mother and child and only the child having an illness were significantly associated with higher overprotective scores (p < 0.001). The percentage of mothers with high permissive scores was higher when only the mother had an illness and when both were healthy, compared to the case of both mother and child having an illness (p = 0.018). After adjusting for confounding factors, having a sick child showed a 1.6-fold increase in the likelihood of a high overprotective score, and both the mother and child having an illness showed a 2.94-fold increase. Similarly, after adjusting for the same confounding factors, the likelihood of a high permissive score was 2.56 times lower when both were ill compared to when both were healthy. Conclusions: This study reveals that when a child is affected by a chronic illness—whether or not the mother is also ill—mothers tend to exhibit higher levels of overprotection and lower levels of permissiveness, while their levels of authoritarianism and democratic attitudes in parenting remain relatively stable.

Background: Social media posts that violate the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes (the Code) may influence societal opinions, views, attitudes, behaviours, and beliefs about breastfeeding, including among healthcare personnel who provide services to breastfeeding women and infants.Aims: To investigate the literacy of healthcare personnel at Ankara Hacettepe University Hospitals, Turkiye, about the Code and their selection of social media posts about breastfeeding, after completing a breastfeeding counselling course.Methods: This study included healthcare personnel who completed 2 breastfeeding counselling courses conducted at Hacettepe University in October 2018 and July 2019. They were asked to search for breast milk and breastfeeding on their favourite social media platforms, select 2-4 posts that attracted them, and evaluate the posts to know if they were supportive of breastfeeding. The counselling course facilitators assessed their responses.Results: Twenty-seven nurses and 40 medical doctors participated in the study; 85.0% of them were female. The participants selected 82 (34%) posts from Instagram, 22 (9.1%) from Facebook, 4 (1.7%) from YouTube, and 134 (55.2%) from other social media platforms. The most common themes of the posts were benefits of breast milk, methods of giving breast milk, and use of infant formula instead of breast milk. The contents of the media were 68.2% (n = 165) favourable and 31.0% (n = 75) unfavourable to breastfeeding. The inter-rater reliability between the participants and facilitators was almost perfect (? coefficient 0.83).Conclusion: Sustainable support is needed in Turkiye to increase literacy among healthcare personnel about social media posts that violate the Code, especially those working at baby-friendly hospitals and those who care for breastfeeding mothers.

In this study we aimed to investigate the levels of selected heavy metals and trace elements (Hg, Pb, Cd, As, Mn, Se, and Cu) in three different biomatrices—maternal urine (Mu), neonatal urine (Nu), and cord blood—of preterm newborns born at less than 35 weeks’ gestation who were staying in the NICU and their mothers, and the relationships of these elements with maternal and neonatal characteristics. Cord Pb, As, and Hg were significantly lower than in Mu, whereas Se and Cu were higher (p < 0.001). All elements were excreted more in Mu than in Nu (p < 0.001). Nu levels of Cd, Mn, Se, and Cu were lower, while As and Hg were higher than in cord blood. Nu metal excretion increased significantly over time (p < 0.001). Positive correlations were found between MuCu and NuCu (r_s = 0.35) and between maternal Se and maternal age (r_s = 0.41). NuHg, MuMn, and cord Mn showed negative correlations with penile length, and NuHg was also negatively correlated with anogenital distance. The first and second NuPb levels were positively correlated with birth weight percentile. The findings suggest transplacental transmission and ongoing exposure to heavy metals and trace elements in preterm infants, highlighting the importance of prenatal environmental exposure awareness for healthcare providers.

Endocrine-disrupting environmental chemicals are a public health concern, particularly fetal exposure to Bisphenol derivatives. This study aimed to assess fetal exposure to Bisphenol derivatives (BPA, BPF, and BPS) by measuring their levels in cord blood and investigating their association with plastic material used in daily life as well as cord blood TSH and free L-thyroxine (fT₄) levels. In this descriptive study, a questionnaire with a face-to-face interview was administered before birth, and cord blood samples were taken immediately after delivery. The mean levels of BPA, BPF, TSH, and fT₄ were measured as 10.69 ± 2.39 ng/ml, 3.80 ± 0.58 ng/ml; 2.36 ± 0.23 µIU/ml, and 14.18 ± 0.53 pg/ml, respectively, in a total of 104 cord blood samples. All BPS levels remained below the detection limit. Linear regression analysis revealed a positive association between birth weight and cord blood BPA concentration (β = 0.26; p = 0.02). Further research on maternal exposure during the fetal and neonatal period is critical for public health.

Objective: Social support is a crucial factor that can offer both preventive and protective benefits against mental problems in mothers. This study investigated the associations between social support and depression, anxiety, and stress disorders in Turkish mothers with young children. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey, comprising 27 questions and the “Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21),” was administered to mothers with children between the ages of 2–6 years. Results: Among the 542 participating mothers, 56.5% were employed, 62.2% reported receiving social support, and 53.7% of the children attended nursery or kindergarten. The percentage of participants with high depression scores (>9) was 3.9%, high anxiety scores (>7) was 9.6%, and high stress scores (>14) was 4.1%. Overall, the prevalence of abnormal Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) scores was 11.8%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that housewives had higher odds of having abnormal DASS-21 scores. Additionally, working mothers without social support and those without access to nursery care had significantly higher rates of abnormal DASS-21 scores. Conclusion: The study emphasizes the importance of social support in improving maternal mental health, particularly for working mothers. Providing adequate social support and access to childcare can enhance maternal well-being, reduce stress, and improve self-efficacy in managing caregiving responsibilities. Future research should focus on developing policies and interventions that strengthen social support networks and improve childcare options to address mental health concerns among mothers. Cite this article as: Aydın B, Çelik M, Açoğlu EA, Isıyel E, Yalçın SS. Pathological scores for depression, anxiety, and stress and their association with social support in mothers by employment status. Turk Arch Pediatr. 2025;60(4):384-390.