Objectives: This analysis uses nationally representative data from the 1988 National Maternal and Infant Health Survey to explore the factors, including employment, associated with breast-feeding initiation and duration.
Methods: Multiple logistic regression was used to model the determinants of breast-feeding initiation among 9087 US women. Multiple linear regression was used to model the duration of breast-feeding among women who breast-fed.
Results: Fifty-three percent of mothers initiated breast-feeding in 1988, and the decision to breast-feed was not associated with maternal employment. However, among breast-feeders, returning to work within a year of delivery was associated with a shorter duration of breast-feeding when other factors were controlled. Among employed mothers, the duration of maternity leave was positively associated with the duration of breast-feeding.
Conclusions: The low rates of breast-feeding initiation in the United States are not attributable to maternal participation in the labor force. However, returning to work is associated with earlier weaning among women who breast-feed.