Factors associated with exclusive breastfeeding in a polyclinic of Havana city
Keywords:
breastfeeding; nursing mothers; newborn infantsAbstract
Introduction: Breastfeeding has guaranteed human survival and its benefits have been recognized.
Objective: To characterize breastfeeding behavior in mothers of infants at the Joaquín Albarrán Polyclinic.
Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study on breastfeeding behavior in mothers of infants at the Joaquín Albarrán Polyclinic, from March to May 2025. The universe consisted of 71 mothers belonging to this health area, and all were included. The variables studied were age, educational level, occupation, marital status, previous children, and breastfeeding duration. Statistical processing and analysis were performed with absolute and relative frequencies.
Results: The 20–24 age group predominated (47.9 %), along with a high prevalence of early breastfeeding abandonment (less than one month) at 32.4 %, being more frequent in this group (19.7 %) and in women with no previous children (19.7 %). Only 18.3% maintained breastfeeding for more than 6 months, although globally this was the most prevalent category (36.6 %), standing out among working mothers (26.8%) and multiparous women (15.5 %). Early abandonment also predominated among married women (15.5 %). By educational level, the pre-university level was the majority (35.2 %), with homogeneous distribution across breastfeeding periods.
Conclusion: A high prevalence of early breastfeeding abandonment is revealed, associated with the inexperience of first-time mothers and maternal youth, which points to the need for targeted support during the immediate postpartum period.
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