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Breastfeeding is beneficial to both the mother and infant, yet many infants are either partially or fully fed with formula milk. Those parents feeding with formula receive less support from professional sources than those breastfeeding and may rely on more non‐professional sources for advice, and this contributes to negative emotional experiences such as guilt. This paper explores the sources of advice for formula feeding, factors associated with using professional or non‐professional sources and compares these sources with those used for breastfeeding advice. A secondary analysis of Australian survey data from 270 mothers was performed. Mothers of six‐month‐old infants participated in an online survey, providing information on advice they received or read about formula feeding and/or breastfeeding from professional and non‐professional sources. A fifth of mothers who were formula feeding did not receive any formula feeding advice from professional sources, and only a small fraction (4.5%) of mothers breastfeeding did not received any breastfeeding advice from professional sources. Compared with those mothers breastfeeding receiving breastfeeding advice, fewer mothers formula feeding receive formula feeding advice from both professional and non‐professional sources. The tin of formula was the most used source of formula advice. Mothers feeding with formula at six months were more likely to have received formula feeding advice from professional sources if they had been fully formula feeding before their infant was under the age of three months. Further research is needed to understand the specific barriers to accessing formula feeding advice and what other factors influence access to formula feeding advice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Breastfeeding is challenging for mothers of preterm infants. The aim of this paper is to describe risk factors for ceasing breastfeeding and methods of feeding until 12 months postnatal age in mothers who breastfed their preterm infants at discharge from neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). The data come from a randomised controlled trial, which evaluated the effectiveness on exclusive breastfeeding at 8 weeks of proactive telephone support compared with reactive support offered to mothers of preterm infants following discharge from NICU. Six NICUs across Sweden randomised a total of 493 mothers. We used regression and survival analyses to assess the risk factors for ceasing breastfeeding and the long‐term outcomes of the intervention. The results showed that 305 (64%) of the infants were breastfed at 6 months and 49 (21%) at 12 months. Partial breastfeeding at discharge, low maternal educational level, and longer length of stay in the NICU increased the risk for ceasing breastfeeding during the first 12 months. Furthermore, the Kaplan–Meier analysis showed that the proportion of mothers who ceased breastfeeding did not differ between the intervention (n = 231) and controls (n = 262) during the first 12 months (log‐rank test p = .68). No difference was found between groups on method of feeding. More than 85% of the infants were fed directly at the breast. These findings provide important insights for health professionals who are supporting mothers of preterm infants to breastfeed long term. Registered in www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT01806480). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Improving infant and young child feeding practices is critical for improving growth and reducing child mortality and morbidity. This paper aims to compare predictors of minimum dietary diversity, an important indicator of adequate complementary feeding practices, in Bangladesh in 2011 and 2014. The 2011 and 2014 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey were used to examine predictors of minimum dietary diversity among 6–23 months. An additional analysis was conducted for the 18–23‐month group, because a significant increase in meeting minimum dietary diversity recommendations was seen in this age group only. Factors found to be associated with practices were compared across time points. In 2011, minimum dietary diversity was 23.8% and increased to 28.8% in 2014. Among children 18–23 months, in 2011, minimum dietary diversity was 32.5% and increased to 42.8% in 2014. Among all children, wealth, education, exposure to media, and antenatal care were significant predictors of dietary diversity. In the 18–23‐month age group, significant predictors in 2011 were wealth and decision making. In 2014, significant predictors were education and exposure to media. Demographic trends indicated a significant increase in education and exposure to media between 2011 and 2014. As these were significant for minimum dietary diversity in 2014 overall and for 18–23 months, they might be important targets of future interventions, specifically utilizing media channels and tailoring special strategies for women with low education and limited exposure to media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]