[Duration of breast feeding in an urban area of São Paulo, Brazil].

Duration of breast-feeding was studied by the authors among a representative sample of families with children under one year of age that resided in the area of coverage of the Health Center-School Samuel B. Pessoa in the borough of Butantã, São Paulo. The data was obtained by means of home interviews in which respondents were questioned about what type of food the child was eating that day, so that they did not have to depend on memory. The median duration of breast-feeding was found to be 2.8 months (84 days), thus showing that in the area under study early weaning is still practiced. Nevertheless, the study confirms the trend observed in the city of São Paulo in the last few years of a return to breast-feeding. This conclusion is supported by the fact that, contrary to the pattern in the previous decade, longer duration of breast-feeding is associated with higher academic levels of the parents (both), i.e., the practice is on the increase among the higher social and economic segments of the population. The study shows that the father can play a significant role in breast-feeding patterns. No correlation was found between breast-feeding duration and number of siblings, per capita monthly income, academic level of the mother, or the regularity of health check-ups.