An exploratory study examining breastfeeding practices among mothers in a maternity hospital in Hong Kong (original) (raw)
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Breastfeeding and weaning practices among Hong Kong mothers: a prospective study
BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 2010
Background: Breastfeeding provides optimal and complete nutrition for newborn babies. Although new mothers in Hong Kong are increasingly choosing to breastfeed their babies, rates of exclusive breastfeeding are low and duration remains short. The purpose of this study was to describe the breastfeeding and weaning practices of Hong Kong mothers over the infant's first year of life to determine the factors associated with early cessation. Methods: A cohort of 1417 mother-infant pairs was recruited from the obstetric units of four public hospitals in Hong Kong in the immediate post-partum period and followed prospectively for 12 months or until weaned. We used descriptive statistics to describe breastfeeding and weaning practices and multiple logistic regression to investigate the relationship between maternal characteristics and breastfeeding cessation. Results: At 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months only 63%, 37.3%, 26.9%, and 12.5% of the infants respectively, were still receiving any breast milk; approximately one-half of breastfeeding mothers were exclusively breastfeeding. Younger mothers, those with a longer duration of residence in Hong Kong, and those returning to work postpartum were more likely to wean before 1 month. Mothers with higher education, previous breastfeeding experience, who were breastfed themselves and those who were planning to exclusively breastfeed and whose husbands preferred breastfeeding were more likely to continue breastfeeding beyond 1 month. The introduction of infant formula before 1 month and returning to work postpartum were predictive of weaning before 3 months. Conclusions: Breastfeeding promotion programs have been successful in achieving high rates of breastfeeding initiation but the focus must now shift to helping new mothers exclusively breastfeed and sustain breastfeeding for longer.
JPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, 2017
To assess the knowledge and practices of working and non-working mothers regarding breastfeeding and weaning. This cross-sectional study involving working and non-working mothers was conducted from May 2015 to May 2016 at different hospitals of Karachi. Data was collected from women who had at least one child aged below 5 years and who had previously breastfed their child. Non-probability quota sampling technique was used. SPSS 20 was used for data analysis.. Of the 414 participants, 207(50%) were non-working while 207(50%) were working mothers. The overall mean age was 29.6±6.3 years. Moreover, 277(66.9%) mothers breastfed their youngest child and a significant difference was observed among the breastfeeding practices of working and non-working mothers (p<0.05). Bottle-feeding was adopted by 320(77.9%) mothers as an alternative method although 259(62.6%) mothers were aware about the harmful effects of bottle-feeding. Home-made products were used for weaning by 389(94%) mothers. ...
Journal of Public Health for Tropical and Coastal Region
Background : Surabaya is one of the cities with low coverage of exclusive breastfeeding in East Java. The average rate of babies who got exclusive breastfeeding in Surabaya from 2012 to 2015 was 63.13% (target 80%). Decision about whether to breastfeed or not is a challenge for every mother, especially for working mothers. This research aimed to identify breastfeeding behavior among working mothers and housewives.Methods : This was descriptive observational research with prospective cohort study design.The sample size was 79 mothers in the eastern part of Surabaya chosen by purposive sampling technique.Results : Result showed that 56.6% of housewives have low knowledge on breastfeeding. Both working mothers (100%) and housewives (90.6%) already give colostrum right after baby born. However, There were 54.7% of housewives and 46.2% of working mothers already give formula milk during the first month after baby born.Conclusion : There were not much difference between working mothers an...
Background: Growth and development of the infants were highly influenced by their first nutrition and breast-milk. Mothers were encouraged to give exclusively breastfeeding as soon as possible after birth up to two years old. However, for working mothers it becomes a challenge for them to continue breastfeeding. Objectives: The aim of this study was to identify the factors that are affecting in termination of breastfeeding among working mothers. And also, the association between socio-demographic data, work related factors and workplace support with breastfeeding practice were examined. Materials and Methods: Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to the government hospital and health clinics in Kuantan, Pahang from March until May 2015. A total of 152 participants were included in this study involving working mothers with children aged six months up to two years old. The factors affecting termination of breastfeeding among working mothers were socio-demographic data, working environment factors and breastfeeding supports were studied. Data was analyzed using the chi-square test in order to determine the relationship between breastfeeding practices with socio-demographic data, work related factors and breastfeeding supports. Results: Most of working mothers in this study stop breastfeeding when they are returning to their work. Strongly supports from the employer at working place significantly affected breastfeeding practices (p<0.05). Conclusion: It is important for the working mothers to have a good support for continuing breastfeeding practice when returning to work from their employers so that they can exclusively breastfeed until the children reached two years old as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
OPTIMAL BREASTFEEDING PRACTICE AND ASSOCIATED FACTORS AMONGST WORKING MOTHERS
Background: Employed women tend to practice breastfeeding less than non-employed women. However, little is known about working mothers' views, experiences and barriers of breastfeeding practice from employment perspective. The objective of this study was to examine knowledge, attitude and practice about optimal breastfeeding and associated factors among working mothers in northern Ethiopia. Methods: Cross-sectional study was carried out in July 2009. A total of 306 women were randomly selected and interviewed. Information regarding participants' demographics, biomedical and employment factors, and practice were collected. The analyses were done using binary logistic regression adjusted for potential confounders. Results: The extent of knowledge and attitude towards breastfeeding was 70% and 75%, respectively. Exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months among employee mothers' was 46%. Optimal breastfeeding practice among employees' was only 35.6%. The logistic regression analysis showed that lower educational status of the mother (aOR = 0.25 ,95% CI = 0.07, 0.86) , lower household income (aOR=7.21,95%CI =1.42,36.56), little work experience (aOR = 0.38, 95%CI =0.21,0.69], cesarean delivery (aOR= 0.41,95% CI = 0.20,0.84), postnatal care visit (aOR =1.99, 95% CI = 1.13 ,3.51) and having good knowledge (aOR=6.98,95%CI= 3.68,13.24) were independently associated with optimal breastfeeding practice. Conclusion: Working mothers had good knowledge and favorable attitude towards breastfeeding, but the optimal practice was low. Income, education, work experience, mode of delivery, postnatal visit, and knowledge are significant determinants of optimal breastfeeding practice. Promotion of breastfeeding at work place is needed to increase the rate of full breastfeeding.
The European Journal of Public Health, 2005
Background: This study uses data from the 2001 Singapore National Breastfeeding Survey to examine factors, including working status, associated with breastfeeding duration. Methods: All women who delivered in the eight hospitals with obstetric services in Singapore from 1 April to 31 May 2001 were invited to participate in a survey on infant feeding and nutrition at 2 and 6 months postpartum. A total of 2149 respondents were interviewed for variables that were known or suspected to be associated with breastfeeding initiation and duration. Cox proportional hazards model was used to determine the associated effect of working status on breastfeeding duration. Kaplan-Meier estimate and survival curves were compared between working and non-working mothers. Results: Working status had no effect on initiation of breastfeeding, but had an effect on breastfeeding duration. The median breastfeeding duration for non-working and working mothers was 9 weeks and 8 weeks, respectively. This difference was significant by log rank test [hazard ratio (HR) ¼ 1.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.14-1.41, P value <0.001]. About 31% of non-working mothers breastfed for up to 6 months as compared to 20% of working mothers. Working mothers were more likely to stop breastfeeding than non-working mothers (HR ¼ 1.61, 95% CI 1.43-1.85, P value ¼ 0.001) after adjusting for potential confounders. The most important reason for working mothers stopping breastfeeding between 2 and 6 months was attributable to work. Conclusion: More breastfeeding-friendly initiatives need to be put in place at workplaces to encourage working mothers to continue breastfeeding upon returning to work.
2021
The prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding in Thailand is the lowest in all of Asia. This study aimed to examine if breastfeeding-friendly policies in a factory influenced breastfeeding behaviors among Thai working mothers. Descriptive data was collected from 216 eligible factory-working mothers of children aged 6-12 months. Data collected included the Demographic Characteristic Questionnaire and the Breastfeeding in the Workplace Survey. Questions included: awareness of factory breastfeeding-friendly policies, breastfeeding behaviors, pumping in the workplace, social support for breastfeeding behaviors during work. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics. The majority of mothers (93.1%) intended to breastfeed with 93.1% also reporting shift work. Most of them rated the factory's support as excellent and very good. The rate of exclusive breastfeeding declined from 76.9% at one month to 46.3% at three months, then sharply dropped to 16.2% at four months and 7.4% at six months...
Global Journal of Health Science, 2013
Background and Objective: During recent decades, women have been increasingly involved in social activities. Despite the fact that mothers prefer to breastfeed, their return to work is associated with a reduction in breastfeeding frequency and duration. The present study evaluates the impact of occupational factors on continuation of breastfeeding and formula initiation in employed mothers with infants aged 6-12 months in Bandar-Abbas, Iran in 2010. Method and Materials: This is a descriptive-analytic study on employed mothers with infants aged 6-12 months referring to healthcare centers of Bandar-Abbas in 2010. Data were collected through a questionnaire dealing with work-related factors in mothers' workplace. Findings: Out of 212 mothers who responded, 52.38% used formula to feed their children, and 27.36% had discontinued breastfeeding. The rate of formula use was significantly higher in mothers who had less than 6 months of maternity leave, those who did not have a suitable nursery or place to milk themselves and preserve the milk in their workplace, those working more than 6 hours per day, and those who could not take a breastfeeding break. Conclusion: It is essential to identify and support breastfeeding employed women. The employers should provide facilities such as nurseries, a suitable physical space for milking, as well as the equipment necessary for milk preservation. Also, such mothers should be granted breastfeeding breaks to feed their child or milk their breasts.