• R Pérez-Escamilla, D Himmelgreen, S Segura-Millán, A González, A M Ferris, G Damio, and A Bermúdez-Vega.
• Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-4017, USA. rperez@canr1.cag.uconn.edu
• J Am Diet Assoc. 1998 Jun 1; 98 (6): 657-63.

ObjectiveTo identify factors associated with the initiation of breast-feeding in a predominantly Puerto Rican population living in inner-city Hartford, Conn.DesignRetrospective study of 144 Latino women (mean +/- standard deviation age = 26.3 +/- 5.7 years) with children at least 1 year old but younger than 6 years old (mean +/- standard deviation age = 3.0 +/- 1.2 years) at the time of the survey. Women were recruited from agencies sponsoring health programs for mothers and children. They were interviewed in their homes (69%) or at the Hispanic Health Council, Hartford, Conn (31%).Subjects/SettingLow-income Latino women who had at least 1 preschooler at the time of the interview. The women lived in inner-city Hartford, and the overwhelming majority were Puerto Rican and received welfare assistance and food stamps. Seventy-eight percent of the women chose to be interviewed in Spanish; the other 22% were interviewed in English.Statistical AnalysesExplanatory variables that related to breast-feeding initiation (P < or = .2) in bivariate chi 2 analyses were entered into a multivariate logistic regression model that was reduced using backward stepwise elimination procedures.ResultsMultivariate analyses indicated that breast-feeding the previous child, shorter length of maternal residence in the United States, not receiving prenatal bottle-feeding advice, more recent birth, and higher birth weight were positively associated with breast-feeding initiation. A major reason for choosing not to breast-feed was that women felt socially uncomfortable doing it.ApplicationsBreast-feeding initiation was more likely in Latino women who received prenatal breast-feeding counselling and postpartum support. Mothers of low-birth-weight infants and women breast-feeding for the first time may need additional help. These findings can be used by programs like the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children to increase breast-feeding initiation.

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