Determinants of infant feeding practices in a low socio-economic area: identifying environmental barriers to breastfeeding

Objective: To identify environmental barriers to breastfeeding. Method: Focus groups were conducted with young women, parents-to-be. mother s, fathers and grandmothers in 1996 in northern Adelaide, South Australia ( a low socio-economic area). Results: Seven focus groups (4-8 participants per group) were conducted. Br eastfeeding was seen as being embarrassing to do in public, and not possibl e to combine with paid employment. While fathers were not supportive of the ir partners breastfeeding in public, health professionals were seen as stro ng advocates of breastfeeding. Bottle feeding was perceived to be more conv enient for the mother, more acceptable in public but not as good as breastf eeding for the baby. Conclusion: An environment that enables women to breastfeed is far from bei ng achieved in this low socio-economic area. particularly in relation to br eastfeeding in public. Implications: Breastfeeding promotion should have a public health focus, co ncentrating on creating a supportive breastfeeding environment through a mu lti strategy approach aimed not just at mothers but also at the community.