Document Type
Presentation
Rights
This item is available under a Creative Commons License for non-commercial use only
Recommended Citation
Introduction: The prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months was found to be very low among Chinese immigrants in Ireland at 3% [1]. This study was conducted to investigate the successful experiences of those who managed to breastfeed for over six months, with exclusive breastfeeding for four to six months. Methods: Participants were recruited from the previous Ireland Chinese Mothers Survey. Fourteen qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted in participants’ homes or public places in Ireland. Results: Thematic content analysis revealed that maternal belief that ‘breast is best’, self-determination and self-efficacy were of foremost importance. Support and care from family, comprehensive breastfeeding knowledge and problem solving techniques, as well as good communication with health professionals in Ireland are essential to exclusive breastfeeding for four to six months. Conclusion: This study highlights unique cultural and social factors affecting breastfeeding of Chinese mothers in Ireland which may be useful to healthcare providers working with immigrant Chinese women internationally.
Funder
Postgraduate R & D skill, strand 1
Publication Details
his poster was presented in the conference 'The II World Congress of Public Health Nutrition and I Latin-American Congress of Community Nutrition, Porto, Portugal, September 2010' The abstract was presented in the journal of 'Public Health Nutrition'. Zhou Q, Younger KM & Kearney JM (2010) How to be successful in exclusive breastfeeding for four to six months – experiences of Chinese mothers in Ireland. Public Health Nutr 13 (9A), 102.