The breastfeeding rate among adolescent mothers in the United States is low and has been dropping since 2003. Young women are less likely to breastfeed than older mothers and have a more rapid discontinuation rate [1-3]. For these teen mothers, as with their older counterparts, knowledge of the benefits of breastfeeding is not sufficient to result in breastfeeding [4-6]. Teen mothers in the US face many challenges to successful breastfeeding that are unique to their age and situation including: coping with the stigma and embarrassment related to being a teen mother; lack of parenting readiness; need for peer acceptance; and dependence on social support systems that may not be supportive of breastfeeding [7]. A significant number of teen mothers have a low income and there is a strong association between living in poverty, crime, poor educational opportunities, teen pregnancy and low breastfeeding [1,3,8-10].
For most teens, their negative views of breastfeeding outweigh the positive. Their attitudes regarding the perceived relationship between breastfeeding and mother-infant bonding is an interesting case in point. An ethnographic study with African-American and Latina adolescent mothers found that bonding was among the better known “benefits” of breastfeeding; however, it was not uniformly perceived as a benefit [11]. This study, among others, found that “bonding” will make it more difficult for them to leave their babies with others, thus making their lives more difficult and complicate their return to school [12,13].
The breastfeeding rate among adolescent mothers in the United States is low and has been dropping since 2003. Young women are less likely to breastfeed than older mothers and have a more rapid discontinuation rate [1-3]. For these teen mothers, as with their older counterparts, knowledge of the benefits of breastfeeding is not sufficient to result in breastfeeding [4-6]. Teen mothers in the US face many challenges to successful breastfeeding that are unique to their age and situation including: coping with the stigma and embarrassment related to being a teen mother; lack of parenting readiness; need for peer acceptance; and dependence on social support systems that may not be supportive of breastfeeding [7]. A significant number of teen mothers have a low income and there is a strong association between living in poverty, crime, poor educational opportunities, teen pregnancy and low breastfeeding [1,3,8-10].For most teens, their negative views of breastfeeding outweigh the positive. Their attitudes regarding the perceived relationship between breastfeeding and mother-infant bonding is an interesting case in point. An ethnographic study with African-American and Latina adolescent mothers found that bonding was among the better known “benefits” of breastfeeding; however, it was not uniformly perceived as a benefit [11]. This study, among others, found that “bonding” will make it more difficult for them to leave their babies with others, thus making their lives more difficult and complicate their return to school [12,13].
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