Journal of human lactation : official journal of International Lactation Consultant Association
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This study seeks, through a logistic regression model, to describe the pattern of breastfeeding duration in Guadalajara, Mexico, during 1993. A multistage random sample of children under 1 year of age (n = 1036) was studied; observational data regarding breastfeeding duration, obtained through a "status quo" procedure, were compared with prevalence rates obtained from the logistic regression model. Modeling the duration of breastfeeding during the first year of life rather than only analyzing observational data helps researchers to understand this process in a dynamic and quantitative way. ⋯ Moreover, the model revealed that less than 40% of the children were breastfed in the fourth month of life; the median age for weaning was 39.3 days; 55% of the potential breastfeeding in the first 4 months did not occur; and the greatest abandonment of breastfeeding in the first 4 months was observed in the first 60 days. Thus, logistic regression seems a suitable option to construct a population-based model that describes breastfeeding duration during the first year of life. The indicators derived from the model offer health care providers valuable information for developing programs that promote breastfeeding.