Breastfeeding practices in Ethiopian women in southern California

Abstract

A retrospective study on the breastfeeding was carried out on selected 45 Ethiopian immigrant women living in the Los Angeles and San Diego areas (mean = 41 months; range 10-84 months). In-depth interviews were conducted to gather information on breastfeeding habits and a detailed analysis was made of the factors leading to the cessation of breastfeeding. The mean duration of breastfeeding in this sample was 4.2 +/- 1.1 months (range 3.0-5.7 months); and a non significant association was found between the length of residence in USA and the duration of breastfeeding (r = 0.189; 0.001 less than p less than 0.01 Pearson Correlation Matrix). Mothers breastfeeding less than four months (N = 27) were compared to mothers who breastfed longer than four months (N = 18). A statistically significant association was found between the duration of breastfeeding and the following variables: mother's level of education (X2 = 20.12 p less than 0.005, df = 1), source of income (X2 = 13.46, p = 0.001, df = 1)' and the availability of free sample formula form the hospital (X2 = 4.46 p = 0.035, df = 1). The most common cited reasons for stopping breastfeeding were mother's employment (40%), and mother's lack of milk (32%). Data suggest here that the Ethiopian immigrant women in this selected sample are not following the trends towards breastfeeding in the United States.