Do early infant feeding practices vary by maternal ethnic group?
- PMID: 17381914
- DOI: 10.1017/S1368980007665513
Do early infant feeding practices vary by maternal ethnic group?
Abstract
Objective: To examine UK country and ethnic variations in infant feeding practices.
Design: Cohort study.
Setting: Infants enrolled in the Millennium Cohort Study, born between September 2000 and January 2002.
Subjects: A total of 18 150 natural mothers (11 286 (8207 white) living in England) of singleton infants.
Outcome measures: Breast-feeding initiation, breast-feeding discontinuation and introduction of solid foods before 4 months. EXPLANATORY VARIABLES: Maternal ethnic group, education and social class.
Results: Seventy per cent of UK mothers started to breast-feed, of whom 62% stopped before 4 months. Median age at discontinuing breast-feeding was 14, 13, 10 and 6 weeks in Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland, respectively. Thirty-six per cent of UK mothers (34% in England) introduced solids before 4 months. White mothers were more likely to discontinue breast-feeding (62%) and introduce solids early (37%) than most other ethnic minority groups; those stopping before 4 months were more likely to introduce solids early compared with those continuing to breast-feed beyond this age (adjusted rate ratio (95% confidence interval): 1.3 (1.1-1.2)). Educated mothers were less likely to stop breast-feeding before 4 months (white mothers, 0.8 (0.8-0.9); non-white mothers, 0.9 (0.8-1.0)) than those with no/minimal qualifications but, among ethnic minorities, were more likely to introduce solids early (1.3 (1.0-1.6)). Socio-economic status was positively associated with breast-feeding continuation among white women, and with age at introduction of solids among non-white women.
Conclusions: We have identified important geographic, ethnic and social inequalities in breast-feeding continuation and introduction of solids within the UK, many of which have not been reported previously. The factors mediating these associations are complex and merit further study to ensure that interventions proposed to promote maternal adherence to current infant feeding recommendations are appropriate and effective.
Similar articles
-
Introduction of complementary foods to infants within the first six months postpartum in Xinjiang, PR China.Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2007;16 Suppl 1:462-6. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2007. PMID: 17392151
-
The contribution of parental and community ethnicity to breastfeeding practices: evidence from the Millennium Cohort Study.Int J Epidemiol. 2005 Dec;34(6):1378-86. doi: 10.1093/ije/dyi162. Epub 2005 Aug 18. Int J Epidemiol. 2005. PMID: 16109734
-
Breast-feeding and feeding practices of infants in a developing country: a national survey in Lebanon.Public Health Nutr. 2006 May;9(3):313-9. doi: 10.1079/phn2006860. Public Health Nutr. 2006. PMID: 16684382
-
The impact of maternal employment on breast-feeding duration in the UK Millennium Cohort Study.Public Health Nutr. 2007 Sep;10(9):891-6. doi: 10.1017/S1368980007226096. Epub 2007 Mar 7. Public Health Nutr. 2007. PMID: 17381907
-
The timing of solid introduction in an 'obesogenic' environment: a narrative review of the evidence and methodological issues.Aust N Z J Public Health. 2015 Aug;39(4):366-73. doi: 10.1111/1753-6405.12376. Epub 2015 Jun 11. Aust N Z J Public Health. 2015. PMID: 26095170 Review.
Cited by
-
A cross-sectional study of infant feeding practices in Vietnamese-born mothers living in Australia.BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2022 Dec 3;22(1):895. doi: 10.1186/s12884-022-05223-8. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2022. PMID: 36463117 Free PMC article.
-
Factors Influencing the Age of Complementary Feeding-A Cross-Sectional Study from Two European Countries.Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct 9;16(20):3799. doi: 10.3390/ijerph16203799. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019. PMID: 31601023 Free PMC article.
-
Informing the 'early years' agenda in Scotland: understanding infant feeding patterns using linked datasets.J Epidemiol Community Health. 2014 Jan;68(1):83-92. doi: 10.1136/jech-2013-202718. Epub 2013 Oct 15. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2014. PMID: 24129609 Free PMC article.
-
Contested moral landscapes: Negotiating breastfeeding stigma in breastmilk sharing, nighttime breastfeeding, and long-term breastfeeding in the U.S. and the U.K.Soc Sci Med. 2016 Nov;168:178-185. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.09.014. Epub 2016 Sep 10. Soc Sci Med. 2016. PMID: 27664771 Free PMC article.
-
Breastfeeding and educational achievement at age 5.Matern Child Nutr. 2014 Jan;10(1):92-101. doi: 10.1111/j.1740-8709.2012.00402.x. Epub 2012 Mar 29. Matern Child Nutr. 2014. PMID: 22462489 Free PMC article.