Familial sources of encouragement and breast-feeding practices among women participating in the US Special Supplemental Nutrition Programme for Women, Infants and Children

Abstract Objective: To explore how sources of familial encouragement are associated with breast-feeding initiation and duration among a national sample participating in the US Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Design: This study uses the 2013–2015 WIC Infant and Toddler Feeding Practices Study 2 (WIC ITFPS-2) data. Breast-feeding initiation was measured at the first month, while duration was derived from a composite of the first 13 months. The analysis used logistic and linear regression to explore the association between encouragement sources and breast-feeding outcomes. Setting: A nationally representative sample of WIC participants in the USA. Participants: WIC participants who completed the 13-month interview of the WIC ITFPS-2 (n 2807). Results: Encouragement was significantly associated with both initiation and duration. Each source of encouragement was associated with a 3·2 (95 % CI 2·8, 3·8) increase in odds of initiating breast-feeding in the unadjusted model and 3·0 (95 % CI 2·5, 3·6) increased odds, controlling for age, education, nativity, poverty status, race and ethnicity (<0·0001). When predicting log duration, each percent increase in source of encouragement was associated with an increasing duration on average by 0·003 d (95 % CI 0·2, 0·3, <0·0001). When controls were added, it was associated with an increase of an average of 0·002 d (95 % CI 0·2, 0·3) per percent increase in encouragement source (<0·0001). Conclusions: Women who receive encouragement appear to be more likely to breastfeed. Additional work is needed to explore sources of encouragement and how to include them in intervention work

Use of Infant Vitamin D Supplementation among Women Attending a Local Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC)

Purpose: Breastfeeding without adequate vitamin D supplementation may predispose infants to vitamin D deficiency and rickets. The aim of this report was to determine the percent of women attending a local WIC program who met the infant vitamin D recommendation and to explore determinants of supplementation. Methods: A cross-sectional de-identified survey was completed, via an online platform, by a sample of women attending two district clinics. The survey collected information concerning the respondent\u27s youngest child on infant feeding at 3 months, vitamin D supplementation and knowledge. Meeting the vitamin D recommendation was defined as either receiving 400 IU daily through supplementation, consuming 32 oz. of infant formula or a combination of both. Results: Among a sample of 163 women (72% Hispanic), 28% reported giving their infant a vitamin D supplement and 31% met the recommendation. Mothers who reported receiving recommendations from a health care professional were 26-times more likely to provide vitamin D supplementation (95 % CI: 5, 135, p\u3c0.01). Conclusions: Use of infant vitamin D supplementation was low in this predominately Hispanic sample of mothers. Counseling greatly affected vitamin D supplementation yet; most reported not receiving education from health care providers. Further research is warranted among a larger sample

Storms and blossoms: Foster care system alumni parenting during the COVID-19 pandemic

PhotoVoice project photobookOur team conducted this PhotoVoice project from January to March 2021. Parenting foster youth and foster system alumni aged 18-26 met for three sessions to use photography to explore their experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic. This photobook was designed as a keepsake for PhotoVoice group participants to be able to share their photographs, experiences, captions, and stories with one another as well as with researchers, practitioners, and policymakers. Names used in the book are pseudonyms.Annie E. Casey Foundatio

SOCIAL NETWORK INFLUENCE ON INFANT FEEDING DECISIONS AMONG LATINX WOMEN

Nutrition during the first 1000 days of life is critical for lifelong physical and mental health. Infant milk choices, introduction of complementary foods, and responsive feeding methods can contribute to risk for infection, chronic disease, mental health, and later nutrition and dietary practices. Current feeding interventions are likely to focus on the mother’s decision-making and frequently neglect to explore the impact of the people around her. Little is known about how social networks can influence feeding decisions and how this may impact the acceptance of recommendations from health professionals or intervention content. This dissertation used a convergent mixed methods approach to explore how social networks influence infant feeding decisions and practices for Latinx women in the U.S. In the quantitative portion, 30 participants completed egocentric network mapping to explore network structure and tie strength. In the qualitative portion, 15 of the participants completed in-depth interviews to allow for a better understanding of the influence that network members have, as well as mothers’ decision-making processes. The quantitative and qualitative strands were integrated to allow for a deeper understanding of the social context in which feeding decisions are made. Three manuscripts are presented in the dissertation. The first explores infant feeding support networks and other social influences, including culture and maternal intuition. The participants tended to have small networks and different levels of cultural influence depending on immigration status. The second manuscript examined the influence of information about infant feeding from personal communication compared to online channels. Participants valued the information from medical providers or their support networks and although many used the internet, they had concerns about the information found there. The third manuscript looked at the experiences of the participants who were formula-feeding during the 2022 formula shortage. Although the participants fought to breastfeed their children, they needed to switch to formula to protect their physical and mental health and be there for them. The formula shortage added stress and took an emotional toll on the participants. The dissertation results confirm the importance of social networks as sources of information and support for Latinx mothers with infants during the first year of life. Overall, there was a need for additional support during this time and additional barriers to infant feeding for immigrant mothers. Direct practice implications include how interventions can be developed to provide support. Policy implications include the need to improve structural support for infant feeding, including access to lactation care and food. Future research should continue to assess network support and could look at sociodemographic differences

Familial sources of encouragement and breast-feeding practices among women participating in the US Special Supplemental Nutrition Programme for Women, Infants and Children

Objective: To explore how sources of familial encouragement are associated with breast-feeding initiation and duration among a national sample participating in the US Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Design: This study uses the 2013–2015 WIC Infant and Toddler Feeding Practices Study 2 (WIC ITFPS-2) data. Breast-feeding initiation was measured at the first month, while duration was derived from a composite of the first 13 months. The analysis used logistic and linear regression to explore the association between encouragement sources and breast-feeding outcomes. Setting: A nationally representative sample of WIC participants in the USA. Participants: WIC participants who completed the 13-month interview of the WIC ITFPS-2 (n 2807). Results: Encouragement was significantly associated with both initiation and duration. Each source of encouragement was associated with a 3·2 (95 % CI 2·8, 3·8) increase in odds of initiating breast-feeding in the unadjusted model and 3·0 (95 % CI 2·5, 3·6) increased odds, controlling for age, education, nativity, poverty status, race and ethnicity (<0·0001). When predicting log duration, each percent increase in source of encouragement was associated with an increasing duration on average by 0·003 d (95 % CI 0·2, 0·3, <0·0001). When controls were added, it was associated with an increase of an average of 0·002 d (95 % CI 0·2, 0·3) per percent increase in encouragement source (<0·0001). Conclusions: Women who receive encouragement appear to be more likely to breastfeed. Additional work is needed to explore sources of encouragement and how to include them in intervention work.https://doi.org/10.1017/S136898002300066

Examination of the Public&rsquo;s Reaction on Twitter to the Over-Turning of Roe v Wade and Abortion Bans

The overturning of Roe v Wade reinvigorated the national debate on abortion. We used Twitter data to examine temporal, geographical and sentiment patterns in the public&rsquo;s reaction. Using the Twitter API for Academic Research, a random sample of publicly available tweets was collected from 1 May&ndash;15 July in 2021 and 2022. Tweets were filtered based on keywords relating to Roe v Wade and abortion (227,161 tweets in 2021 and 504,803 tweets in 2022). These tweets were tagged for sentiment, tracked by state, and indexed over time. Time plots reveal low levels of conversations on these topics until the leaked Supreme Court opinion in early May 2022. Unlike pro-choice tweets which declined, pro-life conversations continued with renewed interest throughout May and increased again following the official overturning of Roe v Wade. Conversations were less prevalent in some these states had abortion trigger laws (Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi). Collapsing across topic categories, 2022 tweets were more negative and less neutral and positive compared to 2021 tweets. In network analysis, tweets mentioning woman/women, supreme court, and abortion spread faster and reached to more Twitter users than those mentioning Roe Wade and Scotus. Twitter data can provide real-time insights into the experiences and perceptions of people across the United States, which can be used to inform healthcare policies and decision-making

Experiences of child welfare social workers in addressing substance use among maltreated young mothers to prevent child maltreatment

Substance use during the perinatal period and while parenting can pose a significant risk to children's safety and well-being. Mothers who have experienced child maltreatment are more likely to use substances than mothers without a history of maltreatment. This study explores how child welfare social workers experience supporting young, maltreated mothers struggling with substance use to prevent the intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with four social workers working with young mothers with a history of maltreatment and substance use. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis revealed two themes: (1) grappling with system challenges and (2) supporting strategies for disrupting intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment. The results highlight the need for systemic changes around support for social workers who work with young mothers who use substances and have a history of maltreatment, and substance use treatment and mental health programs themselves. Mothers need access to prenatal programs that are trauma-informed, non-judgemental and that support participants' basic needs and parenting skills.https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.1300