IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v20y2023i3p1756-d1039535.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Encouraging and Reinforcing Safe Breastfeeding Practices during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author

Listed:
  • Flora Ukoli

    (Department of Surgery, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208, USA)

  • Jacinta Leavell

    (Department of Dental Public Health, School of Dentistry, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208, USA)

  • Amasyah Mayo

    (Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208, USA)

  • Jayla Moore

    (Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208, USA)

  • Nia Nchami

    (Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208, USA)

  • Allysceaeioun Britt

    (Division of Public Health Practice, School of Graduate Studies and Research, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, TN 37208, USA)

Abstract

Aim: Promote safe breastfeeding during the pandemic. Methods: All participants were encouraged to request safe breastfeeding education from their prenatal provider. Pregnant mothers received appropriate breastfeeding and COVID-19 safe breastfeeding education in line with the CDC’s COVID-19 breastfeeding guidelines. Data were obtained from 39 mothers attending Nashville General Hospital pediatric well-baby clinics (Group I: from December 2019 to June 2020) and 97 pregnant women attending prenatal clinics (Group II: from July 2020 to August 2021). Results: The participants’ ages ranged from 15 to 45 years, with a mean of 27.5 ± 6.2. The women in both groups were similar in age, education, employment, and breastfeeding experience. They were equally unlikely to use face masks at home even while receiving guests or holding their babies. Although 121 (89.0%) women claimed face mask use while shopping, the rate for never doing so was 7 (18.0%) vs. 8 (8.3%) ( p < 0.006) for Groups I and II, respectively. Safe practices included limited outing (66 (48.5%)), sanitized hands (62 (45.6%)), restricted visitors (44 (32.4%)), and limited baby outing (27 (19.9%)), and 8 (8.3%) in Group II received COVID-19 vaccinations. About half described fair and accurate COVID-19 safe breastfeeding knowledge, but 22 (30.1%) of them claimed they received no information. Breastfeeding contraindication awareness for Groups I and II were as follows: cocaine = 53.8% vs. 37.1%, p < 0.06; HIV = 35.9% vs. 12.4%, p < 0.002; breast cancer = 17.9% vs. 16.5%; and COVID-19 with symptoms = 28.2% vs. 5.2%, p < 0.001. The information source was similar, with family, friends, and media accounting for 77 (56.6%) of women while doctors, nurses, and the CLC was the source for 21 (15.4%) women. Exclusive breastfeeding one month postpartum for Groups I and II was 41.9% and 12.8% ( p < 0.006), respectively. Conclusion: The mothers were not more knowledgeable regarding breastfeeding safely one year into the COVID-19 pandemic. Conflicting lay information can create healthy behavior ambivalence, which can be prevented by health professionals confidently advising mothers to wear face masks when breastfeeding, restricting visitors and outings, and accepting COVID-19 vaccination. This pandemic remains an open opportunity to promote and encourage breastfeeding to every mother as the default newborn feeding method.

Suggested Citation

  • Flora Ukoli & Jacinta Leavell & Amasyah Mayo & Jayla Moore & Nia Nchami & Allysceaeioun Britt, 2023. "Encouraging and Reinforcing Safe Breastfeeding Practices during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-16, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:3:p:1756-:d:1039535
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/3/1756/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/3/1756/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shannon Hall, 2021. "COVID vaccines and breastfeeding: what the data say," Nature, Nature, vol. 594(7864), pages 492-494, June.
    2. Eric A. Lauer & Karla Armenti & Margaret Henning & Lissa Sirois, 2019. "Identifying Barriers and Supports to Breastfeeding in the Workplace Experienced by Mothers in the New Hampshire Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children Utilizing the To," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(4), pages 1-18, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Md. Maruf Ahmed Molla & Jannat Ara Disha & Mahmuda Yeasmin & Asish Kumar Ghosh & Tasnim Nafisa, 2021. "Decreasing transmission and initiation of countrywide vaccination: Key challenges for future management of COVID‐19 pandemic in Bangladesh," International Journal of Health Planning and Management, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(4), pages 1014-1029, July.
    2. Malgorzata Witkowska-Zimny & Dorota Majczyna, 2021. "How Knowledge about Stem Cells Influences Attitudes towards Breastfeeding: Case Study of Polish Women," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-14, March.
    3. EunSeok Cha & Myoung Hwan Shin & Betty J. Braxter & In Sook Park & Hyesun Jang & Byung Hun Kang, 2021. "Client-Centered Breastfeeding-Promotion Strategies: Q Methodology," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-14, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:3:p:1756-:d:1039535. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.