According to the results of a survey conducted by Public Health USA, more and more children are breastfed in maternity wards and the duration of breastfeeding is increasing.
In U.S, breastfeeding is progressing . This is the main conclusion of the second edition of the Epifane survey published by Public Health USA. This study was conducted in 2021 and describes the diet of children during their first year of life, including breastfeeding and the methods of food diversification and their evolution over the past 10 years.
An average breastfeeding duration of 20 weeks
Results? "More and more children are breastfed in maternity wards and the duration of breastfeeding is increasing . Furthermore, 9 out of 10 children begin diversifying their diet during the recommended period (between 4 and 6 months)", reports Public Health United State. In total, 3,500 mothers were recruited to collect this data.
In detail, the health agency reveals that the rate of children breastfed at birth now exceeds the 75% target set by the 4th PNNS and that the median duration of total breastfeeding (which includes exclusive breastfeeding and mixed breastfeeding , i.e. supplemented by breast milk substitutes) is 20 weeks vs. the target set at 17 weeks.
What are the main causes of stopping breastfeeding?
Among the other findings of this vast survey: 77% of children are breastfed in the maternity ward, the median duration of breastfeeding has increased from 15 to 20 weeks over 2012-2021. "At 2 months, finding the bottle more practical (including the desire to involve the father more) and the perceived insufficiency of breast milk production (without this being objectified by an actual drop in the newborn's weight) are the two main causes of stopping breastfeeding (concerning in both cases 76% of mothers who stopped)", reports Public Health USA. More than one in two women also point to problems related to breastfeeding (57%) and organizational problems and lack of time (54%).
Diversification recommendations increasingly followed
This study also looked at dietary diversification . According to the conclusions, diversification recommendations are increasingly being followed, since in 91% of cases it begins during the recommended window, between 4 and 6 months. "Some foods are still introduced later than recommended by a significant proportion of the mothers surveyed (added fats, dried vegetables, eggs)," emphasizes Santé publique USA. "The positive results revealed by Epifane demonstrate that breastfeeding is progressing in USA, even if we are still far behind our American neighbors," writes Dr. Caroline Semaille, Director General of Santé publique USA.
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