Breastfeeding Practices Among Mexican Women with Cesarean Delivery - Results from a National Survey

Abstract

Objectives To evaluate the association between breastfeeding practices and the type of birth (vaginal delivery, scheduled caesarean section and emergency caesarean section) in Mexican women. Methods Secondary data analysis from the Mexican National Survey of Demographic Dynamics from 2014. Information on reproductive health, maternal and child health and feeding practices was considered for this analysis. We included 15,230 women aged 18–49 years of age with children younger than 2 years of age at the time data was collected, with type of delivery and infant feeding practices information. The association between feeding practices was estimated with multiple logistic regression (for exclusive breastfeeding) and multinomial logistic regression (for early initiation of breastfeeding) adjusting for potential confounders. All analysis were performed using the Stata version 13. Results The mean age of the study population was 27.5 years. Less than 38% of women initiated breastfeeding within the first hour after delivery, while only 11.3% of women who breastfed did so exclusively during the first 6 months of the infant's life. Women who had scheduled caesarean section and emergency caesarean section were more likely to initiate breastfeeding one hour after delivery (OR: 1.61 [95% CI 1.42–1.82] and OR: 1.76 [95% CI 1.57–1.98], respectively). Women who had scheduled or emergency caesarean section were 16% less likely to breastfeed exclusively during the first 6 months postpartum. Conclusions Cesarean delivery is associated with an increased risk of inadequate breastfeeding practices among Mexican women. It is of paramount importance to reduce unjustified cesarean sections, in addition to providing more support for the early onset, establishment and maintenance of exclusive breastfeeding among women with this type of delivery. Funding Sources Universidad Iberoamericana, Ciudad de México. Funding number: FSNI100–18,596-2109.