Breastfeeding by Disability Status in the United States: Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System, 2018-2020
Stephanie Ramer1, Antoinette T Nguyen1, Jennifer M Nelson1
1Stephanie Ramer, Antoinette T. Nguyen, Maura K. Whiteman, Lee Warner, Suzanne Folger, Beatriz Salvesen von Essen, and Katherine Kortsmit are with the Division of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA. At the time of the study, Jennifer M. Nelson was is with the Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, CDC, Atlanta. JoAnn M. Thierry is with the Division of Human Development and Disability, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, CDC, Atlanta.
Objectives. To describe breastfeeding initiation and breastfeeding at 1, 2, and 3 months, and information sources on breastfeeding among women with a recent live birth by disability status. Methods. We analyzed October 2018 to December 2020 data from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System for 24 sites in the United States that included the Washington Group Short Set of Questions on Disability (seeing, hearing, walking or climbing stairs, remembering or concentrating, self-care, communicating). We defined disability as reporting "a lot of difficulty" or "cannot do this at all" on any of these questions. Results. Among 39 673 respondents, 6.0% reported disability. In adjusted analyses, breastfeeding was lower among respondents with disability at 2 (62.6% vs 66.6%; adjusted prevalence ratio [APR] = 0.94; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.89, 0.99) and 3 months (54.7% vs 59.6%; APR = 0.92; 95% CI = 0.86, 0.98) than those without disability. Respondents with disability were less likely to receive information from health care providers or support professionals (89.3% vs 92.3%), but as likely from breastfeeding or lactation specialists (78.1% vs 75.3%). Conclusions. Strategies to ensure women with disability, receive breastfeeding support, including breastfeeding information, could improve breastfeeding outcomes. (Am J Public Health. 2024;114(1):108-117. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2023.307438).
Objectives. To describe breastfeeding initiation and breastfeeding at 1, 2, and 3 months, and information sources on breastfeeding among women with a recent live birth by disability status. Methods. We analyzed October 2018 to December 2020 data from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System for 24 sites in the United States that included the Washington Group Short Set of Questions on Disability (seeing, hearing, walking or climbing stairs, remembering or concentrating, self-care, communicating). We defined disability as reporting "a lot of difficulty" or "cannot do this at all" on any of these questions. Results. Among 39 673 respondents, 6.0% reported disability. In adjusted analyses, breastfeeding was lower among respondents with disability at 2 (62.6% vs 66.6%; adjusted prevalence ratio [APR] = 0.94; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.89, 0.99) and 3 months (54.7% vs 59.6%; APR = 0.92; 95% CI = 0.86, 0.98) than those without disability. Respondents with disability were less likely to receive information from health care providers or support professionals (89.3% vs 92.3%), but as likely from breastfeeding or lactation specialists (78.1% vs 75.3%). Conclusions. Strategies to ensure women with disability, receive breastfeeding support, including breastfeeding information, could improve breastfeeding outcomes. (Am J Public Health. 2024;114(1):108-117. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2023.307438).
