Breastfeeding Practices in Military Families: A 12-Month Prospective Population-Based Study in the National Capital Region

Abstract

Breastfeeding practices in military families have not been widely investigated. The objective of this study was to measure the prevalence and duration of breastfeeding among uniformed families and identify factors associated with breastfeeding. We conducted a prospective study of 253 mothers of new infants from July to December 2004. Initial information gathered included demographic data, feeding choices, and intended duration of breastfeeding. Follow-up surveys were conducted until 12 months postpartum. 51% of mothers were breastfeeding at 6 months and 25% at 1 year. Mothers on active duty were equally likely to breastfeed than non-active duty mothers. Officer mothers were 3 times more likely to breastfeed compared to enlisted mothers (p = 0.005). Mothers with higher education were twice as likely to breastfeed longer (p = 0.015). Families participating in Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) were 2.5 times less likely to breastfed at 1 year (p < 0.001). Our study shows a higher percentage of women initiating and maintaining breastfeeding compared to national data, but still less than current American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines. Our study suggests that to improve breastfeeding rates among uniformed families, more attention may need to be directed to younger, enlisted mothers and those families in a lower socioeconomic status or receiving WIC assistance.

Do Black–White Racial Disparities in Breastfeeding Persist in the Military Community?

“…A drawback to our data is that it lacks a variable indicating whether or not the mothers are employed. Since the military subsample is comprised primarily of military spouses, a higher number than that of civilians may be out of the labor force, although previous work has found very little to no difference between active duty and military spouse populations in breastfeeding duration [14,22].…”

“…Breastfeeding practices among the military family population have received little attention [14,15]. We speculate that such well-known racial disparities may disappear in the military setting.…”

“…The few studies that have included military populations show that breastfeeding prevalence is high among military affiliates [14,22,23]. While these studies laid important groundwork, they used samples from single military branch hospitals and did not collect data from civilians for comparison controls.…”

“…None have examined the comparative persistence of racial disparities, although we note that the two that do use race as a control variable show no difference in breastfeeding rates among military-affiliated women of different races. Soldiers must return to work 6-8 weeks post-partum (and deployments are postponed for 6 months to 1 year depending on the branch; see [24]), yet differences in breastfeeding duration among active duty mothers and wives of soldiers have been shown to be minimal [14,22]. In this article we conduct a comparative analysis between military and civilian-affiliated mothers to examine racial disparities in breastfeeding initiation and duration.…”

Prevalência do aleitamento materno e fatores associados à interrupção da amamentação em mulheres militares

“…Another study showed that officers were three times more likely to breastfeed compared to soldiers (21) .…”