Prevalence of breastfeeding among women attending a baby-friendly hospital in Quixada, Ceara

Resumo

This is an exploratory descriptive study, using a quantitative approach, carried out in Quixadá, CE, during the period of May/ 2007 to May/2008 with the aim of analyzing the prevalence of breastfeeding among women attending a Baby-Friendly Hospital. Community health workers interviewed women who had given birth in the former twelve months using a close-ended questionnaire. A total of 181 women were interviewed. All the interviews were conducted at the mother’s home. Results showed that 55.3% of the mothers interviewed exclusively breast-fed for at least 4 months and that 46.2% exclusively breast-fed for 6 months. It was found that 99.4% had prenatal visits and 97.2% received guidance on breastfeeding. Our findings showed a low prevalence of exclusive breast feeding among the studied population despite the fact that the mothers, participating in the study, had been recruited from a Baby Friendly Hospital-Maternity, which institutionally supports breastfeeding in several steps. It was made evident the need of a more effective support for such women after leaving hospital so as to prevent early weaning.