Department of Pediatrics, Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, New Jersey Medical School, 90 Bergen St Suite 7300, Newark, NJ 07103, USA.
Department of Pediatrics, Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, New Jersey Medical School, 90 Bergen St Suite 7300, Newark, NJ 07103, USA.
J Natl Med Assoc. 2019 Apr;111(2):153-157. doi: 10.1016/j.jnma.2018.07.006. Epub 2018 Sep 1.
Infant feeding practices have been shown to differ between immigrants and non-immigrants in the United States. Our study characterizes feeding practices of infants of immigrant versus American-born mothers followed in an inner city Pediatric continuity clinic serving predominantly low socioeconomic status families.
A survey was given to 102 parents of infants ranging from 12 to 15 months of age who attended the clinic. Parents were asked about their country of origin, ethnic background and time since immigration to the US. They were also asked about their breastfeeding and early infant feeding practices. Statistical significance was estimated using chi-squared tests.
Not only were breastfeeding rates higher among immigrant mothers compared to American-born mothers (88% vs. 63%, p-value 0.008) but they introduced commercially available baby food less frequently (37% vs. 52%, p-value 0.03) and rarely fed their infants fast food (22% vs. 50%, p-value<0.001). Moreover, breast feeding rates decreased with duration of residence in the United States. 53% of immigrant mothers who have been in the United States for less than 5 years breastfed for over 6 months versus 22% of immigrant mothers who resided more than 5 years in the United States (p-value 0.02). The vast majority of immigrant mothers who switched to formula did so because they felt their milk production was insufficient (93%) whereas the vast majority of American-born mothers stopped breastfeeding because they perceived it to be painful (64%, p value 0.001).
Infant feeding practices differ between immigrant and American-born mothers and the differences diminish the longer the mothers reside in the United States. These differences stem from differences in cultural perceptions of breastfeeding. Therefore, in educating mothers about infant feeding, physicians should strongly consider cultural and ethnic factors.
在美国，移民和非移民的婴儿喂养方式存在差异。我们的研究描绘了在为主要来自低社会经济阶层家庭服务的市区儿科连续门诊中，移民母亲和美国本土母亲所喂养婴儿的喂养方式。
我们向 102 名 12 至 15 个月大的婴儿的父母发放了调查问卷，这些父母都曾带孩子到该诊所就诊。问卷内容包括父母的原籍国、族裔背景以及移民到美国的时间。此外，我们还询问了他们的母乳喂养和婴儿早期喂养方式。采用卡方检验来评估统计学显著性。
与美国本土母亲相比，移民母亲的母乳喂养率更高（88%对 63%，p 值 0.008），她们给孩子喂市售婴儿食品的频率更低（37%对 52%，p 值 0.03），很少给孩子喂快餐（22%对 50%，p 值<0.001）。此外，母乳喂养率随在美国居住时间的延长而下降。在美国居住不到 5 年的移民母亲中，有 53%的人母乳喂养超过 6 个月，而在美国居住超过 5 年的移民母亲中，这一比例为 22%（p 值 0.02）。绝大多数改用配方奶的移民母亲是因为她们觉得自己的产奶量不足（93%），而绝大多数美国本土母亲停止母乳喂养是因为她们觉得母乳喂养很痛苦（64%，p 值 0.001）。
移民母亲和美国本土母亲的婴儿喂养方式存在差异，且这种差异会随着母亲在美国居住时间的延长而逐渐缩小。这些差异源于对母乳喂养的文化观念的不同。因此，在向母亲传授婴儿喂养知识时，医生应充分考虑文化和种族因素。
