Defining exclusive breastfeeding in Australia.
Exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life is recommended as the optimal way to feed infants. This paper reviews the measurement of exclusive breastfeeding in Australian studies over the past 10 years. Only half the studies identified that claimed to measure exclusive breastfeeding used a definition consistent with the World Health Organisation. Three studies used 24-h or 7-day recall indicators that have been shown to produce overestimations of the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding. Measurement of exclusive breastfeeding with a valid and consistent definition is vital for monitoring rates and trends, for comparison between different studies and countries and to reach conclusions on various health benefits. Any future measurement of exclusive breastfeeding in Australia should use the World Health Organisation definition and the 24 h recall study design should not be used for this purpose.
School of Public Health, Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. binns@curtin.edu.au
Colin W
CW
Binns
Michelle L
ML
Fraser
Andy H
AH
Lee
Jane
J
Scott
D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D011939:Mental Recall; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D009626:Terminology as Topic; D014944:World Health Organization