Objective: To investigate the status and relevant factors influencing the duration of breastfeeding in urban and rural areas of Chengdu, China.
Methods: 1178 infants and young children aged 6-24 months were selected by stratified cluster random sampling. Breastfeeding information for subjects was obtained by interviewing mothers with a questionnaire. Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazard model were used to identify the factors associated with the termination of breastfeeding.
Results: The median of the duration for breastfeeding was 6.0 months in the urban group and 8.0 months in the rural group (P < 0.05). This study showed that the cost of food consumed by baby was negatively correlated with breastfeeding duration, but the maternity leave was positively correlated with breastfeeding duration.
Conclusion: Breastfeeding duration for children in Chengdu was insufficient. Intervention program should be implemented to improve breastfeeding status.