A Breastfeeding Friendly Environment for African American Families

Background: Breastfeeding rates are increasing according to the 2013 Breastfeeding Report Card from the CDC, however, African American women still trail behind women of other races/ethnicities. This disparity can be further demonstrated in small urban communities in Midwestern states. For example, at a local hospital that serves an economically and racially diverse community, in 2012 the rate of African American women breastfeeding at discharge was 13% compared to 60% of white women. These rates are well below the Healthy People 2020 goal of 81.9% breastfeeding early postpartum. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of a community based peer counselor intervention on increasing the knowledge about the health impact of breast milk and breastfeeding and to increase breastfeeding initiation and exclusivity rates among African American families. / Methods: This is a descriptive study that will measure knowledge and perceived supports and barriers about breastfeeding by surveys administered during pregnancy for those who do and do not plan to breastfeed their infant. Additional surveys will be administered shortly after delivery, and again at 1-2 months, and when the woman stops breastfeeding. The questionnaires will include information about women’s perceptions of individual supports and barriers of their feeding decisions. Women are recruited through word of mouth, PNCC or flyers in community settings. Preliminary analyses will be conducted using descriptive statistics. Additionally content from surveys will be validated with participants for understanding and readability. Data obtained from a hospital data base will be used to measure rates of breastfeeding among all African-American women in the community. / Results and Conclusions: Recruitment for surveys has been slow, but the peer counselor has been able to raise awareness of the importance of breastfeeding through multiple contacts with individuals and groups in the community. This is an essential first step in reaching women and their families to promote a more breastfeeding friendly environment. The data shows a positive relationship between women who chose to breastfeed and WIC talking with them during pregnancy about how breastfeeding is good for the baby and mother. Women who planned to breastfeed and were still breastfeeding after delivery felt they had support by their spouse/father/partner, mother, grandparents and peer counselor. These preliminary results demonstrate the initial impact of individuals who commonly influence an African-American woman’s decision to initiate and continue breastfeeding. These data will be used as pilot data for future and larger funding with community partners.