Poor don't change breastfeeding habits

Poorer women are now less likely to breastfeed than they were a decade ago, increasing the chance of their babies becoming ill and being hospitalised, a new study shows.

A large-scale review of national health surveys has revealed no change in the number of mothers overall who breastfed their babies in the past decade.

But the Melbourne researchers behind the study in the Medical Journal of Australia say the broad figures mask an increasing divide between the richest and the poorest Australians.

Infants in the highest socio-economic group are more likely to be breastfed than in previous years, with a rise from 53 to 66 per cent between 1995 and 2005.

But in the lowest socio-economic group, the figure dropped from 38 to 37 per cent over the decade.

Dr Lisa Amir, from mother and child research at La Trobe University, said infants in higher socio-economic groups were more likely to be breastfed as their mothers often adopted healthier behaviour such as exercising, eating healthy diets and quitting smoking.

Poorer women struggled due to a lack of family support, less ability to seek help with breastfeeding problems, less flexibility with working arrangements and concerns about breastfeeding in public.

"Moreover, (these) women are more likely to interact socially with women who are less inclined to breastfeed, such as those who are younger, less educated, overweight/obese or smokers," Dr Amir said.

The expert warned that, as formula-fed infants were more likely to become ill and be admitted to hospital, her group's research indicated increasing health inequalities in Australian children.

"New mothers need support from their families, communities and workplaces in order to breastfeed," Dr Amir said.

"They need baby friendly-accredited maternity hospitals, increased breastfeeding help in the community and paid maternity leave - not simply another government campaign extolling the virtues of breastfeeding."

The researchers called for policymakers to focus breastfeeding support and promotion on groups with low initiation rates and to trial programs, like teenage mothers supporting other teenage mothers, which have proven effective in other countries.

There should also be a public education campaign to promote breastfeeding in public in an acceptable way to groups that are currently uncomfortable with this issue, she said.