Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Background:

Breastfeeding rates among low-income children participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) lag behind national rates. In Los Angeles County (LAC), recent efforts have been made to increase the number of Baby-Friendly designated hospitals. This study examines changes in Baby-Friendly hospital practices, breastfeeding outcomes, and their relationships with Baby-Friendly hospital status among WIC-enrolled children in LAC.

Methods:

Cross-sectional data from the triennial LAC WIC Survey (2008 through 2017) were analyzed (n = 6,449) to examine changes in Baby-Friendly hospital practices over time, and differences in breastfeeding outcomes by specific Baby-Friendly hospital practices. Multivariate logistic regression was used to evaluate the relationship between the number of Baby-Friendly hospital practices that mothers met and any and exclusive breastfeeding outcomes.

Results:

In 2017, mothers surveyed were more likely to engage in Baby-Friendly hospital practices compared with 2008. Any and exclusive breastfeeding outcomes at 1 and 3 months significantly increased since 2014, and breastfed infants were more likely to have mothers who participated in Baby-Friendly hospital practices. The more Baby-Friendly hospital practices mothers met, the better the breastfeeding outcomes. However, there is room for improvement in the uptake of Baby-Friendly hospital practices in Baby-Friendly hospitals.

Conclusion:

Effort is needed to ensure Baby-Friendly hospitals have support to continuously comply with all steps to maintain Baby-Friendly designation, and non-Baby-Friendly hospitals have support to incorporate these practices into hospital protocols.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

American Academy of Pediatrics. Breastfeeding and the use of human milk. Pediatrics, 2012; 129:e827–e841.

World Health Organization. Exclusive breastfeeding for optimal growth, development and health of infants. 2018. Available at http://who.int/elena/titles/exclusive_breastfeeding/en (accessed December 9, 2018).

Satcher

. DHHS blueprint for action on breastfeeding. Public Health Rep, 2001; 116:72–73.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Results: Breastfeeding rates. Available at https://cdc.gov/breastfeeding/data/nis_data/results.html (accessed December 21, 2018).

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Breastfeeding report card: United States. 2018. Available at https://cdc.gov/breastfeeding/data/reportcard.htm (accessed December 2, 2018).

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General, 2011.

World Health Organization and United Nations Children's Fund. Baby-friendly hospital initiative: Revised, updated and expanded for integrated care. 2009. Available at http://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK153471/pdf/Bookshelf_NBK153471.pdf (accessed December 18, 2018).

World Health Organization and United Nations Children's Fund. Protecting, promoting and supporting breast-feeding: The special role of maternity services. A joint WHO/UNICEF statement. 1989. Available at http://who.int/nutrition/publications/infantfeeding/9241561300/en (accessed December 18, 2018).

Baby-Friendly USA. 10 Steps and international code: The ten steps to successful breastfeeding. Available at https://babyfriendlyusa.org/about-us/10-steps-and-international-code (accessed December 8, 2018).

10.

Howe-Heyman

, Lutenbacher

. The Baby-Friendly hospital initiative as an intervention to improve breastfeeding rates: A review of the literature. J Midwifery Womens Health, 2016; 61:77–102.

11.

Perez-Escamilla

, Martinez

, Segura-Perez

. Impact of the Baby-Friendly hospital initiative on breastfeeding and child health outcomes: A systematic review. Matern Child Nutr, 2016; 12:402–417.

12.

Munn

, Newman

, Mueller

, et al. The impact in the United States of the Baby-Friendly hospital initiative on early infant health and breastfeeding outcomes. Breastfeed Med, 2016; 11:222–230.

13.

United States Department of Agriculture. Women, infants, and children (WIC). 2017. Available at https://fns.usda.gov/wic/women-infants-and-children-wic (accessed December 2, 2018).

14.

Public Health Foundation Enterprises–WIC and First 5 LA. Los Angeles County WIC data. Available at http://lawicdata.org/about (accessed February 12, 2018).

15.

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. 10,000 more Los Angeles babies can look forward to healthier futures thanks to the county's breastfeeding efforts. 2014. Available at http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/chronic/docs/CTG_breastfeeding.pdf (accessed December 19, 2018).

16.

Breastfeed

. Baby-Friendly hospitals. Available at http://breastfeedla.org/baby-friendly-hospitals (accessed December 18, 2018).

17.

Merten

, Dratva

, Ackermann-Liebrich

. Do Baby-Friendly hospitals influence breastfeeding duration on a national level?. Pediatrics, 2005; 116:e702–e708.

18.

Braun

, Giugliani

, Soares

, et al. Evaluation of the impact of the Baby-Friendly hospital initiative on rates of breastfeeding. Am J Public Health, 2003; 93:1277–1279.

19.

Nobari

, Jiang

, Wang

, et al. Baby-Friendly hospital initiative and breastfeeding among WIC-participating infants in Los Angeles County. J Hum Lact, 2017; 33:677–683.

20.

Langellier

, Chaparro

, Whaley

. Social and institutional factors that affect breastfeeding duration among WIC participants in Los Angeles County, California. Matern Child Health J, 2012; 16:1887–1895.

21.

Colaizy

, Saftlas

, Morriss

Jr . Maternal intention to breast-feed and breast-feeding outcomes in term and preterm infants: Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS), 2000–2003. Public Health Nutr, 2012; 15:702–710.

22.

R Foundation for Statistical Computing. R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing [Computer Program]. Vienna, Austria: R Foundation for Statistical Computing, 2017.

23.

Odom

, Li

, Scanlon

, et al. Reasons for earlier than desired cessation of breastfeeding. Pediatrics, 2013; 131:e726–e732.

24.

Nickel

, Labbok

, Hudgens

, et al. The extent that noncompliance with the ten steps to successful breastfeeding influences breastfeeding duration. J Hum Lact, 2013; 29:59–70.

25.

Brodribb

, Kruske

, Miller

. Baby-Friendly hospital accreditation, in-hospital care practices, and breastfeeding. Pediatrics, 2013; 131:685–692.

26.

Murray

, Ricketts

, Dellaport

. Hospital practices that increase breastfeeding duration: Results from a population-based study. Birth, 2007; 34:202–211.

27.

DiGirolamo

, Grummer-Strawn

, Fein

. Effect of maternity-care practices on breastfeeding. Pediatrics, 2008; 122(Suppl 2):S43–S49.

28.

Tarrant

, Wu

, Fong

, et al. Impact of Baby-Friendly hospital practices on breastfeeding in Hong Kong. Birth, 2011; 38:238–245.

29.

Giovannini

, Riva

, Banderali

, Salvioni

, Radaelli

, Agostoni

. Exclusive versus predominant breastfeeding in Italian maternity wards and feeding practices through the first year of life. J Hum Lact, 2005; 21:259–265.

30.

Merewood

, Mehta

, Chamberlain

, et al. Breastfeeding rates in US Baby-Friendly hospitals: Results of a national survey. Pediatrics, 2005; 116:628–634.

31.

Vasquez

, Berg

. The Baby-Friendly journey in a US public hospital. J Perinat Neonatal Nurs, 2012; 26:37–46.

32.

Hawkins

, Stern

, Baum

, et al. Evaluating the impact of the Baby-Friendly hospital initiative on breast-feeding rates: A multi-state analysis. Public Health Nutr, 2015; 18:189–197.

33.

World Health Organization. WHO Guidelines Approved by the Guidelines Review Committee. Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative: Revised, Updated and Expanded for Integrated Care. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization and UNICEF, 2009.

Breastfeeding Outcomes Among WIC-Participating Infants and Their Relationships to Baby-Friendly Hospital Practices

Abstract

Abstract

Background:

Methods:

Results:

Conclusion:

Get full access to this article

References