The influence of reported paternal attitudes on the decision to breast-feed.
OBJECTIVE
To identify factors that influence a woman's decision to breast-feed.


METHODS
Five hundred and fifty-six women were recruited from the maternity wards of two Perth hospitals. Data were collected from a self-administered questionnaire completed by participants prior to discharge. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine factors influencing the initiation of breast-feeding.


RESULTS
At discharge from hospital 83.8% of women were breast-feeding, including 6% who were giving complementary formula feeds. After controlling for potentially confounding demographic and biomedical factors, the father's reported preference for breast-feeding was found to be the most important factor influencing a woman's decision to breast-feed (OR 10.18).


CONCLUSIONS
Fathers participate in and influence the choice of infant feeding method and should be included in breast-feeding discussions.
Scott
J A
JA
School of Public Health, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia.
Binns
C W
CW
Aroni
R A
RA
D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001315:Australia; D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003657:Decision Making; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009790:Occupations; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010332:Paternal Behavior; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires