Reasons given by mothers for discontinuing breastfeeding in Iran

Abstract

BackgroundWe have previously shown that in Iran, only 28% of infants were exclusively breastfed at six months, despite a high prevalence of breastfeeding at two years of age. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the reasons women discontinued exclusive breastfeeding.MethodThis retrospective study was based on questionnaires and interviews with 63,071 mothers of infants up to 24 months of age, divided into two populations: infants younger than six months and six months or older. The data were collected in 2005–2006 from all 30 provinces of Iran.ResultsOnly 5.3% of infants less than six months of age stopped breastfeeding (mean age of 3.2 months); more commonly in urban than rural areas. The most frequently cited reasons mothers gave for discontinuing exclusive breastfeeding were physicians’ recommendation (54%) and insufficient breast milk (self-perceived or true, 28%). Breastfeeding was common after six months of age: only 11% of infants discontinued breastfeeding, at a mean of 13.8 months. The most common reason for discontinuation at this age was insufficient breast milk (self-perceived or true, 45%). Maternal illness or medication (10%), infant illness (6%), and return to work (3%) were uncommon causes. Use of a pacifier was correlated with breastfeeding discontinuation. Maternal age and education was not associated with duration of breastfeeding. Multivariate analysis showed that using a pacifier and formula or other bottle feeding increased the risk of early cessation of breastfeeding.ConclusionsPhysicians and other health professionals have an important role to play in encouraging and supporting mothers to maintain breastfeeding.

Assessing neonatal care practices in rural Nepal

“…We did not study the causes of the high rates of non-exclusive breastfeeding, but other studies demonstrate this is due to cultural beliefs, insufficient breast milk production, and maternal illness. 13,14 One potential cause may be difficulty in breast milk production as reported by nearly a quarter of the mothers. Another potential etiology may be given that Daman is a farming community, newly delivered mothers often returned to their field work as was observed, but this data was not exclusively collected.…”

Impact of Educational Materials on the Duration of Exclusive Breastfeeding Assured by Women Who Delivered at the Souissi Maternity Hospital in Rabat

“…Bennis et al et al reported that mothers' concerns about milk supply were often identified as an important reason for their decision to stop breastfeeding during the first six months [31]. Such finding was also evoked by Gatti, indicating that the perception of inadequate milk supply is put forth by mothers as the main reason for breastfeeding discontinuation during the first four weeks after delivery and also the most common reason for early cessation [32] and total cessation of breastfeeding [33]. As far as sucking difficulty is concerned, it has been reported that cracked nipples are one of the four variables assessed and associated with an early discontinuation of EB [34].…”

Barriers to Breast Feeding: A Review

“…From the researches done abroad, (with accessible full texts), eight studies, including a meta-analysis, reported a deleterious effect of pacifiers on breastfeeding (17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)30); five papers refuted these observations (25,(33)(34)(35)37) and findings from four surveys were inconclusive (24,31,32,36). All three studies from Iran claimed that pacifier use is associated with decreased duration of EBF/predominant breast feeding and early introduction of the bottle (5,19,27).…”