Prevalence of breastfeeding in a middle-sized city in southeastern Brazil

Abstract

This work aims to diagnose the standard of breastfeeding and of the use of pacifiers and baby-bottles - of children under one year old, living in Juiz de Fora, MG. The methodology used was the Cross-sectional survey of 1859 people, carried out during a National Immunization Campaign, in the year 2002. The results obtained were 92.8% of the children started breastfeeding on their first day of life, at home. 20.8% were exclusively breastfed in the first four months of life, and 15.7% in the first six months. The complementary feeding rate was 43.8% and the breastfeeding rate at 12 months was 56%. At 12 months, 65.8% used pacifiers, and 70% used baby-bottles. As for the conclusion, most children started breastfeeding on their first day of life, at home (92.8%) but this rate declined steadily (56% at 12 months). The exclusive breastfeeding rate in the first four and six months of life (20.8% e 15.7%, respectively) and the breastfeeding rate at one year (56%), were extremely low and failed to live up to WHO`s guidelines. The Exclusive Breastfeeding rate at four months of life was lower than that of all Brazilian capitals, except Cuiabá. This situation calls for the urgent implementation of programs aimed at supporting and promoting breastfeeding in the city.