Division of General Academic Pediatrics, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital, 11100 Euclid Avenue, MS 6019, Room 784H, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA.
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, 9501 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA.
J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2023 Apr;10(2):581-592. doi: 10.1007/s40615-022-01248-z. Epub 2022 Jan 31.
Breastfeeding is the optimal nutrition for infants given the numerous health benefits that are conferred on mothers, infants, and society in a dose-dependent manner. However, low breastfeeding rates and racial breastfeeding inequities persist for the African American (AA) community due to historic structural racism. The issue is especially salient at the Rainbow Center for Women and Children, an urban health center in Cleveland, Ohio where approximately 90% of their mothers are AA, WIC-eligible, and publicly insured. Our study aims to elucidate factors contributing to breastfeeding practices and identify supports that could be added for women served at RCWC. The study was conducted within 2 cohorts both of exclusively AA women. Wave 1 of the study included AA mothers who exclusively breastfed, did mixed feeding, or exclusively formula fed. Wave 2 included expectant women at least considering breastfeeding. Breastfeeding attitudes of those who had exclusively breastfed or practiced mixed feeding were not significantly different than those of expectant participants planning to breastfeed; mean attitude scores, however, were in the "neutral" range. Participants endorsed many sources of support for their feeding choices, including the infant's father, their own parents, and family. However, the data show that even when women feel personally supported in their feeding choices by their partner and family, if additional breastfeeding help is needed, they will benefit from help accessing available resources. Thus, lactation support that helps women achieve their own breastfeeding goals is optimal; customized care ultimately can move the needle on racial inequities in breastfeeding for our society.
母乳喂养对婴儿是最佳营养，因为它以剂量依赖的方式为母亲、婴儿和社会带来众多健康益处。然而，由于历史上的结构性种族主义，非裔美国人（AA）社区的母乳喂养率仍然很低，并且存在种族间母乳喂养的不平等。这个问题在俄亥俄州克利夫兰市的 Rainbow 妇女和儿童中心尤为突出，该中心大约 90%的母亲是非裔美国人，符合 WIC 资格，并获得公共保险。我们的研究旨在阐明促成母乳喂养实践的因素，并确定可以为 RCWC 服务的女性增加哪些支持。该研究在两个完全由 AA 女性组成的队列中进行。研究的第一波包括纯母乳喂养、混合喂养或纯配方喂养的 AA 母亲。第二波包括至少考虑母乳喂养的孕妇。那些纯母乳喂养或混合喂养的母乳喂养态度与计划母乳喂养的预期参与者没有显著差异；然而，平均态度得分处于“中性”范围。参与者支持他们喂养选择的许多来源，包括婴儿的父亲、自己的父母和家人。然而，数据表明，即使女性在喂养选择上感到自己得到了伴侣和家人的个人支持，如果需要额外的母乳喂养帮助，她们将受益于获得可用资源的帮助。因此，帮助女性实现自己母乳喂养目标的母乳喂养支持是最佳的；定制护理最终可以为我们的社会解决母乳喂养中的种族不平等问题。
