Breastfeeding in low-income families of the turn of the 19th-century town of Rauma, Southwestern Finland, according to stable isotope analyses of archaeological teeth

• Published in: Journal of archaeological science, reports reports, 2022-08, Vol.44, p.103521, Article 103521
• Main Authors: Väre, Tiina, Harris, Alison J.T., Finnilä, Mikko, Lidén, Kerstin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 19th century; Breastfeeding; Carbon isotopes; Dentin; Nitrogen isotopes; Southwestern Finland
• ISSN: 2352-409X; 2352-4103
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2022.103521

•We explore infant feeding in 19th-century Rauma, Finland.•The δ15N and δ13C values in mm segments of archaeological M1 dentin were analyzed.•The sampled individuals had been buried in area consisting of cheaper burial plots.•Such plots were presumably mainly used by the local low-income families.•The patterns of δ15N and δ13C values were similar in all 7 analyzed teeth.•The results indicated exclusive breastfeeding during approximately the first six months.•Weaning lasted until nearly two years of age.•This schedule is rather consistent with the current recommendations.•The δ15N and δ13C values in premolar root and M1 collagen were compared.•Older Rauma children may have consumed relatively more plant-based foods.•We analyzed the δ15N and δ13C values in 1 mm segments of archaeological M1 dentin.•The sampled individuals presumably mainly represented local low-income families.•The result indicate exclusive breastfeeding for approx. the first six months.•T·Weaning lasted until nearly two years of age.•Older children in Rauma likely consumed more plant-based foods than the young. We explore breastfeeding practices among low-income families in the late 18th to early 19th-century town of Rauma in Southwestern Finland. The breastfeeding practices in the area of the current nation of Finland (at the time belonging to first Sweden and then Russia) had been under debate. While in certain regions artificial infant feeding was common and was linked to high infant mortality, breastfeeding was also known to be practiced in certain regions of Finland. To explore this, we analyzed the δ15N and δ13C values in collagen of horizontally cut dentin segments of permanent first molars (M1; n = 7) collected from 19th century human skeletal remains from the deconsecrated Holy Trinity churchyard excavated in 2016. The resulting isotopic profiles were similarly patterned across the seven individuals. The emerging pattern revealed a period of exclusive breastfeeding during approximately the first six months of life, followed by weaning until the latter half of the second year. We further investigated diet during mid-childhood by comparing the stable isotope ratios in collagen of the M1 and premolar roots. This comparison suggested that the mid-childhood diets may have contained more plant-based foods than those consumed earlier in childhood.