Post-natal Care
Table 1: Survey Demographics Country
n
All mothers US UK
China Brazil India Egypt
South Africa
3,994 401 789 403 400
1,501 250 250
28.7 31.8 29.0 29.6 25.0 28.7 28.7
Mean Age Socioeconomic Class 28.8
- Working (%) Married (%) College Education (%) 43 79 24
General population 55 86 33 General population 55 62 26 Middle–higher income in major urban areas Middle–higher income in major urban areas Upper middle–higher income in urban areas General population Middle–higher income
69 67 7
17 32
100 74
100 100 32
51 16 20 9
12
Table 2: Primary Reason Reported by Women that Best Described Why They Wanted to Start Breastfeeding* Reason for Wanting to Breastfeed
It is healthier for my child
It is the most natural thing to do It is safer than formula milk
It is cheaper than formula feeding For my own health
I did not want to breastfeed
All Mothers (%) US (%) 63
16 UK (%) China (%)
43 42 70 12 27 18
10 28 3 8 3 8 5 1 2 5 3 1 6 3 21
2 * This question was not asked in Egypt and South Africa. In all tables, percentage figures have been rounded up or down to the next decimal.
Table 3: Duration of Breastfeeding Reported by Women Answering the Question “Thinking About Your Youngest Child, What Was the Age of Your Child When You Stopped/Planned to Stop Breastfeeding”? Reported Breastfeeding Duration
Did not breastfeed 0–3 months 4–6 months
7–12 months 13+ months
All Mothers (%) US (%) UK (%) 12 5 34
10 19
Did not breastfeed or make it past six months 41 32 28
5
35 45 52 3
A further aim was to use the survey outcomes to raise awareness and foster discussion among healthcare professionals involved in the promotion, initiation and continuation of successful breastfeeding.
Materials and Methods
The survey reported here was part of a larger worldwide survey commissioned by the Philips Center for Health and Well-being and Philips AVENT that investigated the perceived challenges of early parenthood, outcomes of which have been reported elsewhere.29 article focuses specifically on the challenges around breastfeeding.
This
The survey was conducted in 2011 in seven countries: the US, Brazil, the UK, Egypt, South Africa, China and India. Participating women were 18–40 years of age, were pregnant with their first child or had at least one child up to the age of five years and were willing to complete the questionnaire. Structured questionnaires were administered through phone interviews, in person (India) or online (the UK). The questionnaire was standardised, although certain questions were modified to reflect the situation specific to the country examined – e.g., healthcare provision or income stratification.
Descriptive statistics, such as the percentage agreement with given statements, were derived for each country individually and for all countries combined. Cross-sectional analysis was conducted to understand relationships between stopping breastfeeding and related behaviours. No formal statistical analyses were performed on these data. Consequently, interpretation of these results is to generate hypotheses rather than to confirm them.
26 3 1 8
24 3 7 3 2 15 73 17 10
19 33 6 9 33
42 10
53 40 30 15 18 60
Results
This article concisely summarises the results and interprets the key findings – more comprehensive and detailed results have been published in the full reports for the individual countries by the Philips Center for Health and Well-being.29
Demographics
In total, 3,994 women completed the survey. Table 1 provides the demographic details of these women showing that their mean age was 28.8 years, 43 % were working, 79 % were married and 24 % had a college degree.
Aspirations and Duration of Breastfeeding Overall, Table 2 shows that an overwhelming 94 % of mothers wanted to start breastfeeding, ranging from 100 % in India to only 79 % in the UK. Of the primary reasons given, 63 % refer to breastfeeding being healthier for the infant, 16 % to it being the most natural thing to do and 10 % to it being safer than formula milk.
Despite 94 % of women wanting to breastfeed, 12 % did not breastfeed and an additional 29 % stopped within the first six months (see Table 3). Thus, overall, 41 % never started or did not breastfeed beyond the first six months, with extremes being seen in the UK, where 73 % of women failed to either start or reach six months, compared with India, where only 10 % of women were not breastfeeding at all or stopped within the first six months. These findings indicate that although success can be achieved, many mothers are experiencing challenges when it comes to breastfeeding.
EUROPEAN OBSTETRICS & GYNAECOLOGY SUPPLEMENT
18 22 7
Brazil (%) 88
10 - - -
1
10 7 1 2 -
India (%) 81
China (%) Brazil (%) India (%) Egypt (%) South Africa (%) 11
20 9
71
47 19 34
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