We Do A Lot For Mom But We Should Do More For Mothers

By John A. Tures, Professor of Political Science, LaGrange College

Americans spend quite a lot on Mom for Mother’s Day. But as a country, we could be doing a lot more for mothers in America. International rankings tend to show that as among the high-income nations, we rank way behind our counterparts in caring for mothers, who do so much for us.

As FinanceBuzz.com shows, the American people plan celebrate Mom…or at least spend a lot on her this Sunday. Last year, Americans spent nearly $35 billion on Mother’s Day gifts and other associated activities. When it comes to opening the wallet or purse for flowers, Mother’s Day ranks third, behind only Christmas and Valentine’s Day, the latter of which is at the top of the list. Another $113 million is the expected value of all Mother’s Day cards.

But according to FinanceBuzz.com, despite our celebration of moms, they can get a little exhausted throughout the year. “A 2021 survey on the state of motherhood in the U.S. from Motherly found that 93% of moms in the country reported feeling burned out, at least occasionally. That number is up 7 percentage points from the previous year, and many of the survey respondents attributed the burnout to issues such as attempting to create a work and home life balance and taking on the brunt of childcare and household duties in their homes.”

The United States also lags significantly behind other developed countries when it comes to maternal mortality rates. Research from The Commonwealth Fund paints a bleaker picture.

“In 2022 there were approximately 22 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births in the United States — far above rates for other high-income countries,” The Commonwealth Fund. Their data shows that for Norway, it’s virtually zero. Switzerland (1.2 per 100,000 live births), Sweden, (2.6), Netherlands (3.4), Japan (3.4), Australia (3.5), Germany (3.5), the United Kingdom (5.5), France (7.6), Canada (8.4), and the Republic of Korea (8.8) all have lower maternal death rates than Asian-American women (13.2 per 100,000 live births).

New Zealand (13.6 per 100,000 live births) and Chile (14.3) both have lower maternal mortality rates than do US Hispanic women (16.9), and U.S. Caucasian women (19 per 100,000). For African-American women, the death toll is a staggering 49.5 maternal deaths for 100,000 live births.

“Nearly two of three maternal deaths in the U.S. occur during the postpartum period, up to 42 days following birth,” The Commonwealth Fund adds. “Compared to women in the other countries we studied, U.S. women are the least likely to have supports such as home visits and guaranteed paid leave during this critical time.” It’s reminiscent of what happened to Shelby Eatenton-Latcherie (played by Julia Roberts in the movie “Steel Magnolias” from a play which our college recently performed) who died not long after giving birth.

And nothing will break a mother’s heart like the loss of her child. Yet the U.S. could be doing better when it comes to lowering our infant mortality rate, according to America’s Health Rankings. “The average rate of infant mortality among OECD countries was 4.0 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2021. At 5.4 deaths per 1,000 live births, the U.S. ranked No. 33 of the 38 OECD countries, falling between the Slovak Republic (4.9 deaths per 1,000 live births, No. 32) and Chile (5.8 deaths per 1,000 live births, No. 34). Japan and Norway (both No. 1) had the lowest rates, with 1.7 deaths per 1,000 live births. Mexico (No. 37) and Colombia (No. 38) had the highest infant mortality rates of OECD countries at 12.7 and 16.5 deaths per 1,000 live births, respectively.”

Studies like those from Save the Children, reported by Business Insider, show other ways Americans can help mothers, besides reducing the maternal mortality rate and the infant mortality rate. These include having a better health care system for all, paid maternal leave, and better help for kids in terms of education opportunities.

Such reforms would help mothers truly enjoy Mother’s Day better.

John A. Tures is a professor of political science at LaGrange College in LaGrange, Georgia. His views are his own. He can be reached at jtures@lagrange.edu or on “X” at @johntures2. His first book “Branded” a thriller novel where corporate greed, media manipulation and academic intrigue collide in a deadly game of product placement, has been published by the Huntsville Independent Press (https://www.huntsvilleindependent.com/product-page/branded).