Study: Dads can make a difference in breastfeeding, safe infant sleep practices
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Key takeaways:
- Among fathers who wanted mothers to breastfeed, 78% reported that breastfeeding was occurring at 8 weeks.
- Among fathers with a negative opinion of breastfeeding, 33% reported breastfeeding at 8 weeks
Fathers can make a significant difference in whether an infant is breastfed and placed to sleep safely, according to a study published in Pediatrics.
Currently, the AAP recommends exclusively breastfeeding infants for the first 6 months of life and supports continued breastfeeding through 2 years or beyond. The AAP recommendations for safe sleep include placing a baby on its back; using a firm, flat, non-inclined sleep surface; and avoiding of soft objects and loose bedding in the sleep environment.
“Improving breastfeeding rates and safe infant sleep practices are public health and clinical priorities,” John James Parker, MD, an instructor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and pediatrician at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, said in a video abstract accompanying its online publication.
“However, rates are below national targets, and racial and ethnic disparities exist for both metrics,” Parker said. “There is also growing evidence that links maternal characteristics and child involvement with positive child outcomes. However, there's limited information collected from fathers on infant breastfeeding and safe sleep practices.”
The objectives of the study included assessing father-reported rates of infant breastfeeding and safe sleep practices, as well as “finding associations between paternal sociodemographic characteristics with breastfeeding at 8 weeks,” Parker said.
Parker and colleagues examined data from a survey of 250 fathers in Georgia conducted 2 to 6 months after their infant’s birth. Fathers reported rates of infant breastfeeding and safe sleep practices that were lower than recommended.
Although more than 99% of fathers reported placing their child to sleep, in the survey they reported less than perfect safe sleep practices. In all. 81.1% reported placing their infant on their back to sleep, only 31.9% reported using an approved sleep surface and 44.1% reported using no soft bedding. Only 15.7% of the fathers surveyed reported following all three safe sleep recommended practices.
Regarding breastfeeding, among the 67.8% of fathers surveyed who reported wanting their infant’s mother to breastfeed, 95% reported breastfeeding initiation and 78% reported breastfeeding at 8 weeks.
“This is significantly higher than fathers who did not want their infant’s mother to breastfeed or had no opinion, of whom 69% reported breastfeeding initiation and only 33% reported [breastfeeding at] 8 weeks,” Parker said.
The researchers also found inequities in safe sleep practices. Fathers with college degrees were more likely to receive advice on safe sleep guidelines and were more likely to avoid soft bedding when placing infants to sleep.
“In our adjusted analysis, we found that non-Hispanic Black fathers were less likely to use the back-to-sleep position and avoid soft bedding compared with non-Hispanic white fathers,” Parker said. “Nationally, the rate of Sudden Unexplained Infant Death of non-Hispanic Black infants is more than twice that of non-Hispanic white infants. Differences in unsafe sleep position and environment may contribute to this disparity.”
The researchers concluded that fathers reported less than optimal infant breastfeeding rates and safe sleep practices overall, but made essential contributions to these practices.
“Our findings underscore that new fathers are a critical audience to promote breastfeeding and safe infant sleep,” Parker said in a press release. “Fathers need to be directly engaged in breastfeeding discussions, and providers need to describe the important role fathers play in breastfeeding success. ... These interventions must involve both parents to be most effective.”
References:
Fathers key to supporting breastfeeding and safe infant sleep. https://www.luriechildrens.org/en/news-stories/fathers-key-to-supporting-breastfeeding-and-safe-infant-sleep/. Published June 16, 2023. Accessed June 20, 2023.
Parker J, et al. Pediatrics. 2023;doi:10.1542/peds.2022-061008.
Collapse
Read more about
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts