INTRODUCTION Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for the first six months of an infant‟s life is recognized by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Children‟s Fund (UNICEF) as the most effective and essential strategy for optimal growth and prevention of infant mortality. One of the factors that influences a mothers choice to exclusively breastfeed her child, is the marketing of breast milk substitutes. The International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (ICMBS) was developed to promote, protect and support EBF. Although South Africa (SA) has voluntarily adopted the ICMBS in 1981 to help protect and promote EBF, the exclusive breastfeeding rates in SA remain very low (<8%). In a renewed attempt to protect and promote exclusive breastfeeding in SA, the code has been legislated in December 2012 to ensure compliance. AIM To assess the extent of ICMBS violations in health facilities in four Provinces in SA. DESIGN This was cross-sectional study. A purposive stratified cluster sample of eight to twelve health facilities was drawn in four Provinces (Gauteng, North-West, Free-State and Eastern Cape) in SA. Fixed structured interviews were conducted by trained fieldworkers with three health workers from each of the 40 health facilities to determine the extent of ICMBS violations as well as awareness of the ICMBS. The receipt of free gifts, free/low cost supplies/samples of formula milk, bottles or teats, and free materials or equipment from companies who sell breast-milk substitutes (BMS), infants foods/drinks and bottles or teats (violation of articles 6.2, 6.3, 6.6, 6.8, 7.3 and 7.4 of the ICMBS) were determined. RESULTS A total number of four violations were reported by four health workers from three of the 40 health facilities (7.5%). ICMBS violations were reported only in Gauteng Province with no violations in North West, Free State or Eastern Cape Province. All four violations involved the receipt of free gifts for personal use (including a pen, booklet, calendars and booklet/poster) from a BMS company (Nestlé), violating article 7.3 of the ICMBS. Health workers from four health facilities also reported the receipt of information materials and/or equipment for use in the facility, including leaflets, maternal and infant feeding product booklets and water bags from Nestlé. However, since the brand name of a product within the scope of the ICMBS was not visible on any of the materials or equipment, none of these gifts constituted a violation. In terms of ICMBS awareness, 46 health workers (38%), including the four health workers who received gifts, from 19 health facilities situated mainly in Eastern Cape and Gauteng Province were familiar with the ICMBS. CONCLUSIONS Violations were reported in 7.5% of health facilities, including the health facilities where health workers were aware of the code. Implementation and training of the ICBMS in health facilities is there for warranted. / MSc (Nutrition), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Introduction: Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) contributes towards reducing infant and young child mortality however global EBF rates are sub-optimal. One of the factors that influences a mothers‟ choice to exclusively breastfeed her child, is the marketing of breast milk substitutes. The International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (ICMBS) was developed to promote, protect and support EBF. Although South Africa has adopted the ICMBS, the Code was only legislated in December 2012 to ensure compliance. Aim: To do a baseline assessment of the extent of ICMBS violations in the South African advertising media including magazines, newspapers, television (TV) and radio. Methods: In this cross-sectional study data were collected on multiple occasions. Data were collected by means of recording and/or screening daily broadcasts from four TV channels (SABC 1, 2, 3 and e.tv), nine commercial radio stations, 116 different magazines and 10 different newspapers for ICMBS violations. This study was done within a period of four months between November 2012 and January 2014. Violations pertaining to advertising media include advertising or promoting infant formula, other milk products marketed for children up to 36 months of age (e.g. growing-up milk or follow-on milk), foods for infants younger than six months, any other food or beverages marketed or represented to be suitable for the use as partial or total replacements of breast milk, and feeding bottles and teats to the general public (article 5.1 of the ICMBS). Results: A total number of 30 violations were identified from 117 baby product advertisements that were published in eight of the 169 screened magazines. No violations were found from advertisements on TV, radio or in newspapers. The majority of advertisements that violated article 5.1 of the ICMBS, were advertisements of feeding bottles (60%), followed by advertisements of growing-up milk (20%) and feeding teats (16.7%). Only one violation (3.3%) was an advertisement of infant food for infants younger than six months. Advertisements with violations were advertising baby products from 11 different companies. More than half of the violations (56.7%) were published in two editions from the same magazine, or inserts within that magazine, who‟s target group was pregnant women. Eight advertisements with violations (26.6%) were published in family magazines, three (10%) were published in baby magazines, and two (6.7%) were published in lifestyle magazines. Conclusion: According to the present baseline study, ICMBS violations were only found in a small percentage (4.7%) of magazines targeted mainly at pregnant women. However, although the present study included the majority of available South African magazines distributed in South Africa, not all the available newspapers, TV channels and radio stations were included in the sample size. The true extent of ICMBS violations in the South African advertising media may therefore be higher. It can also not be concluded that BMS companies use only magazines to advertise products pertaining to the scope of the ICMBS. A follow-up study need to determine the impact of legislating the Code on ICMBS violations in advertising media. / MSc (Nutrition), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

INTRODUCTION Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for the first six months of an infant‟s life is recognized by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations Children‟s Fund (UNICEF) as the most effective and essential strategy for optimal growth and prevention of infant mortality. One of the factors that influences a mothers choice to exclusively breastfeed her child, is the marketing of breast milk substitutes. The International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (ICMBS) was developed to promote, protect and support EBF. Although South Africa (SA) has voluntarily adopted the ICMBS in 1981 to help protect and promote EBF, the exclusive breastfeeding rates in SA remain very low (<8%). In a renewed attempt to protect and promote exclusive breastfeeding in SA, the code has been legislated in December 2012 to ensure compliance. AIM To assess the extent of ICMBS violations in health facilities in four Provinces in SA. DESIGN This was cross-sectional study. A purposive stratified cluster sample of eight to twelve health facilities was drawn in four Provinces (Gauteng, North-West, Free-State and Eastern Cape) in SA. Fixed structured interviews were conducted by trained fieldworkers with three health workers from each of the 40 health facilities to determine the extent of ICMBS violations as well as awareness of the ICMBS. The receipt of free gifts, free/low cost supplies/samples of formula milk, bottles or teats, and free materials or equipment from companies who sell breast-milk substitutes (BMS), infants foods/drinks and bottles or teats (violation of articles 6.2, 6.3, 6.6, 6.8, 7.3 and 7.4 of the ICMBS) were determined. RESULTS A total number of four violations were reported by four health workers from three of the 40 health facilities (7.5%). ICMBS violations were reported only in Gauteng Province with no violations in North West, Free State or Eastern Cape Province. All four violations involved the receipt of free gifts for personal use (including a pen, booklet, calendars and booklet/poster) from a BMS company (Nestlé), violating article 7.3 of the ICMBS. Health workers from four health facilities also reported the receipt of information materials and/or equipment for use in the facility, including leaflets, maternal and infant feeding product booklets and water bags from Nestlé. However, since the brand name of a product within the scope of the ICMBS was not visible on any of the materials or equipment, none of these gifts constituted a violation. In terms of ICMBS awareness, 46 health workers (38%), including the four health workers who received gifts, from 19 health facilities situated mainly in Eastern Cape and Gauteng Province were familiar with the ICMBS. CONCLUSIONS Violations were reported in 7.5% of health facilities, including the health facilities where health workers were aware of the code. Implementation and training of the ICBMS in health facilities is there for warranted. / MSc (Nutrition), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Introduction: Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) contributes towards reducing infant and young child mortality however global EBF rates are sub-optimal. One of the factors that influences a mothers‟ choice to exclusively breastfeed her child, is the marketing of breast milk substitutes. The International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (ICMBS) was developed to promote, protect and support EBF. Although South Africa has adopted the ICMBS, the Code was only legislated in December 2012 to ensure compliance. Aim: To do a baseline assessment of the extent of ICMBS violations in the South African advertising media including magazines, newspapers, television (TV) and radio. Methods: In this cross-sectional study data were collected on multiple occasions. Data were collected by means of recording and/or screening daily broadcasts from four TV channels (SABC 1, 2, 3 and e.tv), nine commercial radio stations, 116 different magazines and 10 different newspapers for ICMBS violations. This study was done within a period of four months between November 2012 and January 2014. Violations pertaining to advertising media include advertising or promoting infant formula, other milk products marketed for children up to 36 months of age (e.g. growing-up milk or follow-on milk), foods for infants younger than six months, any other food or beverages marketed or represented to be suitable for the use as partial or total replacements of breast milk, and feeding bottles and teats to the general public (article 5.1 of the ICMBS). Results: A total number of 30 violations were identified from 117 baby product advertisements that were published in eight of the 169 screened magazines. No violations were found from advertisements on TV, radio or in newspapers. The majority of advertisements that violated article 5.1 of the ICMBS, were advertisements of feeding bottles (60%), followed by advertisements of growing-up milk (20%) and feeding teats (16.7%). Only one violation (3.3%) was an advertisement of infant food for infants younger than six months. Advertisements with violations were advertising baby products from 11 different companies. More than half of the violations (56.7%) were published in two editions from the same magazine, or inserts within that magazine, who‟s target group was pregnant women. Eight advertisements with violations (26.6%) were published in family magazines, three (10%) were published in baby magazines, and two (6.7%) were published in lifestyle magazines. Conclusion: According to the present baseline study, ICMBS violations were only found in a small percentage (4.7%) of magazines targeted mainly at pregnant women. However, although the present study included the majority of available South African magazines distributed in South Africa, not all the available newspapers, TV channels and radio stations were included in the sample size. The true extent of ICMBS violations in the South African advertising media may therefore be higher. It can also not be concluded that BMS companies use only magazines to advertise products pertaining to the scope of the ICMBS. A follow-up study need to determine the impact of legislating the Code on ICMBS violations in advertising media. / MSc (Nutrition), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Blight and the elimination thereof have profoundly impacted urban areas. In Colony Park/Lakeside (Austin, Texas), community leaders and members of the local neighborhood association have come together to mitigate and reverse social, economic, and physical symptoms of blight in their neighborhood. Following the approval of a HUD Community Challenge Planning Grant application that was submitted by the Austin Neighborhood Housing and Community Development (NHCD) department, these individuals utilized the media attention surrounding the grant to campaign for code enforcement, landlord-tenant accountability, policing, and the clean-up of illegal dumping in the area. Moreover, after much ado between residents and City workers, the neighborhood association devised a community-focused partnership with the City to ensure that current residents would reap the benefits of the planning process and help define the collective will and interests of the community. Utilizing publicly available data and first-hand knowledge from one City code compliance investigator and local residents, this report attempts to provide a blight indicator analysis of the Colony Park/Lakeside planning area as defined by NHCD. In other words, this report uses quantitative data to create descriptive maps of current neighborhood conditions with particular attention to code violations and community discussions surrounding them. The results of this work are intended to shed light on where resources should be directed to further research in the area and to resolve issues that threaten the health, safety, and viability of the neighborhood today. / text

One of the key determinants of the “quality” of a neighbourhood is the extent to which owners maintain their properties. Much has been written about the impact of neighbourhood blight or the physically rejuvenating impact of gentrification. To better understand why some neighbourhoods are thriving, and others not, a critical variable that has seen little exploration is the type of tenure. This thesis, focused mostly on data from the City of Rochester NY, comparing absentee landlords, resident landlords and owner-occupiers, looking for differences in the level of maintenance of residential properties. Using a procedure developed by the author, every house in Rochester, Buffalo, and Syracuse containing 1-6 units was assessed, creating a quantitative analysis that is both more current, and on a much larger scale than previous work. Findings mostly confirmed observations and theories in the literature, but there were a number of significant differences. The key observation within Rochester was that, regardless of geographic scale, absentee owners consistently took the worst care of their properties, followed by resident landlords and then owner-occupiers. Further, size and type of absentee landlord mattered. Tenure was found to be the driving force in predicting maintenance outcomes, compounded by variables such as property values and race. Evidence from Buffalo and Syracuse indicated that findings may be generalizable, at least for declining industrial cities. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)