Abstract
Objective:
to evaluate maternal intention to breastfeed, duration of breastfeeding up to 24 months-of-age and reasons for weaning in the first year of life.
Methods:
this was a cohort study conducted in Pelotas, RS, Brazil, with participants from the Multi-Center Body Composition Study; a life table was used to analyze duration of breastfeeding.
Results:
of the 1377 mothers screened, 74.3% reported intending to exclusively breastfeed up until 6 months, while 91.1% intended to prolong breastfeeding until at least 12 months; 58.0% of children were breastfed up to at least 6 months; median breastfeeding duration was 10.8 months (IQR: 5.8 - 23.0); the main reasons reported for weaning were insufficient breast milk (57.3%), return to work/school (45.5%), and unexplained refusal by the baby (40.1%).
Conclusion:
the results show that despite the intention to breastfeed, there are still structural and social barriers that interfere with successful breastfeeding, especially those related to working mothers.
Keywords:
Breast Feeding; Intention; Weaning; Longitudinal Studies
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LegendMIB: maternal intention to breastfeed
a) Number of children being breastfed since the beginning of the period, less half the number of censored children - (2) - (4)/2 -, assuming that on average these lossos occurred in the middle of the month.b) (3)/(5).c) 1 - (6).d) (8 prior month) x (7).e) 95%CI: 95% confidence interval.f) Final follow-up was at 24 months.
