Breast-feeding patterns and lactational amenorrhoea among the Warli tribals: a socioanthropological inquiry

Data on breast-feeding patterns and lactational amenorrhoea were collected as part of a socioanthropological inquiry conducted among the Warli tribals living along the west coast of India. A need to study and length of lactational amenorrhoea among these tribal women arose because in the complete absence of the use of contraception, lactational amenorrhoea acts as a natural birth spacer in this population. Analysis of the data shows that the suckling frequency during lactation, the sex of the child born, and the nutritional status of the women influence the length of lactational amenorrhoea. The consequences of variations in the length of lactational amenorrhoea on other related demographic parameters are also mentioned.