decline of breasteeding

The demographics are a big thing (typically, older, educated wealthier women tend to breastfeed... the uneducated, poorer may not know the benefits or not have time because they tend to go back to work sooner, in jobs that are less "pumping friendly").

information and *support* once breastfeeding is underway is huge. Most women quit within a few weeks because it hurts, it takes a lot of time, they develop thrush, etc... Lots of women quit because of lack of information. And lack of support for pumping once they go back to work.

The demographics are a big thing (typically, older, educated wealthier women tend to breastfeed... the uneducated, poorer may not know the benefits or not have time because they tend to go back to work sooner, in jobs that are less "pumping friendly").

information and *support* once breastfeeding is underway is huge. Most women quit within a few weeks because it hurts, it takes a lot of time, they develop thrush, etc... Lots of women quit because of lack of information. And lack of support for pumping once they go back to work.

I'm not sure these demographics (older, educated, wealthier women) will hold for the Philipines.

First, what is the purpose of your survey? Information or data for a research study?

Here's an interesting article for you to think about when planning your study. . .about causation and correlation (does breastfeeding improve the health of infants more than formula feeding)

http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/correlation-does-not-equal-causation

Here's another that you may find interesting. . .

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/570508

Here's the article in journal

http://www.springerlink.com/content/c17315230704l008/

And, here's another. . .

http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/abs/10.1089/bfm.2008.0126

Hope this doesn't overwhelm, but when you begin to study, you will be better "armed" to design the plan.

i would definitely look at what the doctors have told their patients. i think there is a lot of misinformation and general ignorance. when i had my oldest child, i had a doctor who didn't seem to offer an opinion one way or the other about breastfeeding. he had the attitude that breastfeeding helps brain development but so does 'xyz' formula, so whatever, it doesn't matter what you do. (btw, he was a doctor who worked with mostly low income families) i didn't do much research myself,since i was young and stupid, i just breastfed because it seemed liked the natural thing to do (and because it was easier than heating bottles at 2 am). when i had my second child, i had a midwife who gave a huge list of reasons to nurse my second child... things like it helps the brain develop better than any formula, helps the baby's immune system, helps shrink the uterus faster, women who breastfed have lower rates of breast cancer, it will help my body get back in shape faster, etc... she also told me how to pump at work, where to get good deals on pumps, the laws about breastfeeding in public... it was so much information, and i learned a ton of things i never knew before, and i felt like there wasn't any reason not to nurse. so i think what information doctors provide can influence what new moms do.

altho... not all hospitals seem to advocate nursing. with my second son, the hospital staff seemed unhappy that he was nursing because they were afraid he wouldn't be eating enough, and gaining weight properly. this was an automatic response, because i asked to nurse the baby about an hour after he was born, and the staff just sort of sighed and said you know, most babies who nurse don't gain enough weight, eat often enough,get all the nutrients they need, etc... so if the midwife hadn't given me such a great list of reasons to nurse, and helped me feel confident about it, i probably would have let the hositpal staff talk me into bottle feeding.

thanks everyone for your suggestions

Here is a link to the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (Canada) site's Best Practice Guidelines for Breastfeeding. click here

The page also offers various PDFs for download, including an evaluation tool that may be helpful in developing your survey questions.