Factors Associated with Breastfeeding beyond Six Months
October 12, 2006 by Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor
Filed under activism, scientific studies
In Australia, between 80-90% of women initiate breastfeeding yet only 47% continue to give their babies any breast milk at age six months. In the hopes of increasing the rate of breastfeeding duration, Australian researchers studied the effect of two mid-pregnancy educational interventions. In an article published today in the International Breastfeeding Journal, the researchers reported that neither of the educational programs increased breastfeeding initiation or duration compared to standard care. However, several independent factors were identified. Factors that made it likely that women would be giving their babies any breast milk at age six months included:
a very strong desire to breastfeed; having been breastfed oneself as a baby; being born in an Asian country; and older maternal age. There was an increasing association with increasing age.
Factors negatively correlated with feeding any breast milk at six months were:
a woman having no intention to breastfeed six months or more; smoking 20 or more cigarettes per day pre-pregnancy; not attending childbirth education; maternal obesity; having self-reported depression in the six months after birth; and the baby receiving infant formula while in the hospital.*
The authors conclude that any future breastfeeding educational interventions should target women who desire to breastfeed but are at high risk of early discontinuation.
(In light of the study results with respect to formula-feeding in the hospital, perhaps other breastfeeding initiatives should include banning formula freebies. That’s exactly what recently introduced legislation in Taiwan proposes to do, according to yesterday’s Taipei Times. Under the proposed legislation, non-profit and commercial organizations would be prohibited from offering free or low cost formula, and furthermore, such organizations could not encourage mothers to use formula at all.)
* Forster D., McLachlan H., Lumley J. Factors associated with breastfeeding at six months postpartum in a group of Australian women. Int Breastfeed J. 2006 Oct 12; 1:18.
