title: [Duration of breast feeding].
abstract: A longitudinal prospective study was performed to investigate the total duration of breast-feeding. Three hundred and sixty six mothers were followed-up until three years after delivery. At three months, 73% were breast-feeding, at six months 52%, at one year 20% and 1% breast-fed more than three years. Correlations were found between duration of breast-feeding and maternal age, education and social class. Mature mothers who lived under good socioeconomic conditions breast-fed for longer periods than those who were less fortunate in these respects. Mothers who had breast-fed an older child usually breast-fed the next child for a similar period. Breast-feeding has become popular: only 1% did not want to breast-feed at all and 89% of mothers intended to breast-feed their children for six months or more. Solid food was most frequently introduced when the infants were four months old. At six months 4% were still exclusively breast-fed. Even though the mothers now breast-feed longer than previously, only 39% succeeded in breast-feeding for as long as or longer than they had intended.
authors.affiliation: Gynaekologisk-obstetrisk afdeling, Centralsygehuset Hillerød.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vestermark
authors.forename: C K
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Høgdall
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Plenov
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Birch
mesh_terms: D001942:Breast Feeding; D003718:Denmark; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors
vernacular_title: Ammeperiodens varighed.