Protective factors for early initiation of breastfeeding among Brazilian nursing mothers

Giovana Gaglianone Lemos; Taciana Maia de Sousa; Rafaela Cristina Vieira E Souza; Larissa Bueno Ferreira; Cristianny Miranda; Luana Caroline Dos Santos

doi:10.3389/fped.2023.1203575

Protective factors for early initiation of breastfeeding among Brazilian nursing mothers

Front Pediatr. 2023 Jun 9:11:1203575. doi: 10.3389/fped.2023.1203575. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Giovana Gaglianone Lemos¹, Taciana Maia de Sousa¹, Rafaela Cristina Vieira E Souza¹, Larissa Bueno Ferreira², Cristianny Miranda¹, Luana Caroline Dos Santos¹

Affiliations

¹ Nutrition Department, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
² Nutrition Department, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Brazil.

Abstract

Objectives: Evaluate the protective factors associated with early initiation of breastfeeding.

Methods: Cross-sectional study conducted with Brazilian nursing mothers. Breastfeeding in the first hour of life and difficulty initiating breastfeeding in the birth room were adopted as outcome variables and associated with other maternal and child information. Poisson regression was conducted to synthesize the data.

Results: Among 104 nursing mothers evaluated, 56.7% reported breastfeeding in the first hour of life and 43% had difficulty initiating breastfeeding in the birth room. There was a higher prevalence of breastfeeding in the first hour of life among mothers with previous breastfeeding experience (PR = 1.47, 95% CI 1.04-2.07). Difficulty initiating breastfeeding in the birth room was more prevalent among mothers who did not receive breastfeeding guidance during antenatal care (PR = 2.83, 95% CI 1.43-4.32) and those without previous breastfeeding experience (PR = 2.49, 95% CI 1.24-6.45).

Conclusion: These findings highlight the importance of adequate professional guidance, especially for primiparous mothers.

Keywords: antenatal care; breastfeeding; child health; nursing mothers; postpartum period.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (grant number APQ-01782-10); and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (productivity scholarship—grant number 301555/2019-2). Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico had no role in the design, analysis or writing of this article.