Maternal variables influencing duration of breastfeeding among low-income mothers

Abstract: This study used a retrospec-tive comparison of 2 naturally occur-ring groups, first to examine how exclusive versus partial breastfeed-ing relates to duration of breastfeed-ing and, second, to determine if factors such as age and body mass index are associated with exclusive versus par-tial breastfeeding duration. These fac-tors were hypothesized to influence the amount of breastfeeding in a sample of 42 low-income mothers enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children of a pre-dominately rural, Midwestern county. This study examined de-identified data from a state database spanning a calendar year. Breastfeeding behav-ior, age, and body mass index mea-surements for mothers giving birth within the first 6 months of that year were analyzed. Exclusive breastfeeding mothers breastfed longer, were of older age, and had lower body mass indexes than partial breastfeeding mothers. These findings further describe char-acteristics of low-income breastfeed-ing women. Understanding how factors associated with exclusive versus par-tial breastfeeding affect breastfeed-ing duration may inform clinicians and researchers of areas for future interventions