Written by Robin Kaplan, M.Ed., IBCLC
It is well known that in the United States, breastfeeding rates are somewhat discouraging. With only 35% of babies exclusively breastfeeding at 3 months and 44.3% receiving any breast milk at all at 6 months, as a nation we are not meeting the standards set forth by the American Academy of Pediatrics nor the World Health Organization. As we continue to look at ways in which we can increase our breastfeeding rates, one suggestion has been to examine the breastfeeding education taught to nonpregnant youth.
An article in the upcoming issue of the Journal of Human Lactation explores this issue. Kavanaugh, et al. surveyed 248 nonpregnant undergraduate youth at a large research university in Tennessee to determine their breastfeeding knowledge, attitudes, prior exposure, and breastfeeding intent (For subscribers to The Journal of Human Lactation, you can read the full text of the paper here).
The most significant findings from the study were:
- Over 90% of the participants agreed that breastfeeding should be started soon after birth and that breast milk and formula were not the same. However, only about 50% of the participants knew that breastfeeding can reduce a mother’s risk of cancer and that formula-fed infants are ill more often than breastfed babies.
- While a majority of the participants believed that breastfeeding was cheaper and healthier than formula, an astounding number felt that breastfeeding in public was embarrassing and unacceptable (71% female, 47.7% male) as well as inconvenient and painful (47.8 female, 33.8% male).
- Those who had been breastfed as infants scored significantly higher on breastfeeding knowledge and positive attitude towards breastfeeding than those who were unsure or had not been breastfed.
- The majority of the participants (80%) intended to breastfeed/support a partner to breastfeed in the future.
So where do we go from here? How do we change the attitudes of children, adolescents, and young nonpregnant adults about breastfeeding?
- This research study is limited in its generalization due to the sample of the participants, therefore we need more wide spread, longitudinal studies of adolescents and young adults’ breastfeeding knowledge and attitudes.
- We need better support and legislation to protect breastfeeding in public. If breastfeeding in public becomes the norm, as it is in MANY other countries, it should decrease the perception that it is embarrassing, unacceptable, and inconvenient. It’s time we start seeing more of this:
and less of this:
- Additional curriculum, like the one pioneered in NY State, that promotes breastfeeding as the norm, in human development and nutrition classes for children, adolescents and college students. The bulk of the content could focus on the benefits of breastfeeding (for both mother and baby), the hazards of formula, and the superior nutritional components of breast milk.
- A recommendation, per the authors (which I personally think is brilliant), it also to educate our youth about appropriate infant development and behavior. The authors concluded that if our youth understood how often an infant/toddler needed to breastfeed and that covering with a blanket was not always feasible (especially with an older infant who wants to see the world around him/her), that they might stop viewing a breastfeeding mother as being immodest when breastfeeding in public. Also, since an infant typically breastfeeds every few hours, it is irrational to expect this mother to stay at home for every feeding.
What recommendations would you add to this list? How does your community make breastfeeding the norm?
Robin Kaplan received training to be a Certified Lactation Educator and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant from UCSD. She holds a Masters in Education from UCLA, a multiple-subjects teacher credential from UCLA, and a BA in Psychology from Washington University in St. Louis, MO. In 2009, Robin started her own business, the San Diego Breastfeeding Center, where she offers in-home breastfeeding consultations, free weekly support groups, breastfeeding classes, and online support through her business blog. In addition to her private practice, Robin was the founding Co-editor of the International Lactation Consultant Association’s (ILCA) blog, Lactation Matters, and a regular contributor to ILCA’s E-Globe newsletter. She also is the host/producer of The Boob Group online radio show, which launches on July 2, 2012, and the Director of Marketing for NaturalKidz.com. Robin lives in her native San Diego, where she enjoys cooking, hiking, trying new trendy restaurants, and traveling with her family.