Family support and exclusive breastfeeding among Yogyakarta mothers in employment

Background and Objectives: Exclusive breastfeeding provides many benefits to both infants and mothers. Despite the introduction of laws aimed at protecting the practice of exclusive breastfeeding, the coverage of exclusive breastfeeding remains low, particularly for working mothers. Methods and Study Design: This crosssectional study recruited working mothers employed in medium and large companies in Bantul District, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The study participants were 158 working mothers whose children were aged 6– 12 months, and they were selected using the probability proportional to size technique. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and multiple logistic regression. Results: Adequate family support for breastfeeding (OR: 2.86; 95% CI: 1.25–6.53) and a high paternal education level (OR: 2.68; 95% CI: 1.11– 6.48) were significantly associated with the practice of exclusive breastfeeding among working mothers. However, the infant’s sex and age, parity, and the mother’s age and education level were unassociated with exclusive breastfeeding. Conclusion: Family support and a high paternal education level are crucial in enabling working mothers to practice exclusive breastfeeding. Interventions that promote exclusive breastfeeding should focus on involving the husband and other family members in health care programs related to breastfeeding. Key Words: exclusive breastfeeding, family support, paternal education level, working mother