BREASTFEEDING
Breastfeeding has numerous benefits for women and
their infants.1 Through the 1970s and early 1980s,
the
percentage of mothers who began breastfeeding
in the hospital increased steadily to 61.9 percent,
but then gradually declined to 51.5 percent by
1990. Between 1990 and 2001, the breastfeeding
initiation
rates steadily increased among Black, Hispanic,
and
White women.
In 2001, breastfeeding rates in
the hospital were 72.2 percent among Whites, 73.0
percent
among Hispanics,
and 52.9 percent among Blacks. These rates were
the highest recorded since national breastfeeding
data
have been collected. However, disparities remain
between Black women and women of other racial
and ethnic groups.
The percentage of women
who report that they are still breastfeeding at
6 months postpartum
reached
a high
of 32.5 percent in 2001. At 6 months postpartum,
34.2 percent, 32.8 percent, and 21.9 percent
of White, Hispanic,
and Black women, respectively, were still breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding rates were highest among women who
were aged 25 years and older, White or
Hispanic, college
educated, not participating in the Supplemental
Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and
Children (WIC), and/or
living in the western States. Women were
also more
likely to initiate breastfeeding with their
first child, but women with more than one
child were
slightly more
likely to continue breastfeeding at 6 months
postpartum. While maternal employment has
little impact on
breastfeeding initiation, women who are employed
full-time are less
likely to breastfeed 6 months after the birth
of their child than women who are not employed
or
working part-time.2 |
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