The portrayal of infant feeding in British women's magazines: a qualitative and quantitative content analysis

Exclusive breastfeeding is the best start an infant can receive. However, in many high-income countries breastfeeding rates are low and this may be a reflection of social norms which in turn may be influenced by the media. This study therefore explored the portrayal of infant feeding in women's general interest magazines.

The five top selling women's weekly magazines in Britain and Ireland for 2013 over a 4-month period were included. A quantitative and qualitative content analysis was conducted for both written and visual content.

In 58 magazines, there were 90 references to infant feeding with an average of 1.5 (range: 0-5) per magazine. Breastfeeding and formula feeding references were present in equal number and both were predominantly portrayed positively. There was only 1 visual representation of breast feeding compared with 11 of bottle feeding. Potential drivers for breastfeeding included its role in post-pregnancy weight loss and celebrity endorsement while family routine, the role of males in the house and concerns about adverse health effects were identified as barriers to breastfeeding.

An improvement in visual representations of breast feeding and factual information in women's weekly magazines may be helpful in re-defining social norms regarding infant feeding. Keywords: food and nutrition, health promotion, public health.