Table 2.
Characteristics of study sample by EBF status up to six months
| Variables | EBF (n=586) | Non-EBF (n=236) | P-valuea |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maternal age, years | 29 (17-43) | 30 (21-47) | 0.001 |
| BMI, kg·m-2 | 21.5 (15.6-38.5) | 22.1 (15.8-35.2) | 0.015 |
| Household registration | |||
| Local | 411 (70.1) | 176 (74.6) | 0.202 |
| Non-local | 175 (29.9) | 60 (25.4) | |
| Resident area | |||
| Urban | 348 (59.4) | 147 (62.3) | 0.442 |
| Rural | 238 (40.6) | 89 (37.7) | |
| Marital status | |||
| Married | 572 (97.6) | 234 (99.2) | 0.174 |
| Unmarried | 14 (2.4) | 2 (0.8) | |
| Educational level | |||
| Junior high school or below | 87 (14.8) | 29 (12.3) | 0.374 |
| High school | 101 (17.2) | 35 (14.8) | |
| College or above | 398 (67.9) | 172 (72.9) | |
| Employment status | |||
| Unemployed | 83 (14.2) | 28 (11.9) | 0.003 |
| Part-time | 182 (31.1) | 49 (20.8) | |
| Full-time | 321 (54.8) | 159 (67.4) | |
| Monthly family incomes, RMB | |||
| <5 000 | 49 (8.4) | 24 (10.2) | |
| 5 000-10 000 | 244 (41.6) | 97 (41.1) | 0.057 |
| 10 001-19 999 | 208 (35.5) | 66 (28) | |
| ≥ 20 000 | 85 (14.5) | 49 (20.8) | |
| Gestational age | |||
| 34- 37 weeks | 61 (10.4) | 22 (9.3) | |
| > 37 weeks | 525 (89.6) | 214 (90.7) | 0.640 |
| Parity | |||
| Primiparas | 399 (68.1) | 154 (65.3) | 0.433 |
| Multiparas | 187 (31.9) | 82 (34.7) | |
| Pregnancy complications | |||
| Yes | 46 (7.8) | 21 (8.9) | 0.619 |
| No | 540 (92.2) | 215 (91.1) | |
| Postnatal complications | |||
| Yes | 9 (1.5) | 5 (2.1) | 0.558 |
| No | 577 (98.5) | 231 (97.9) | |
| Mode of delivery | |||
| Vaginal delivery | 398 (67.9) | 139 (58.9) | 0.014 |
| Cesarean delivery | 188 (32.1) | 97 (41.1) | |
| Birth weight, g | |||
| ≤ 2500 | 21 (3.6) | 13 (5.5) | 0.210 |
| >2500 | 565 (96.4) | 223 (94.5) | |
| Baby sex | |||
| Male | 309 (52.7) | 122 (54.7) | 0.788 |
| Female | 277 (47.3) | 114 (48.3) | |
| Rooming-in | |||
| Yes | 544 (92.8) | 216 (91.5) | 0.521 |
| No | 42 (7.2) | 20 (8.5) | |
| Breastfeeding initiation after birth | |||
| ≤ 1h | 408 (69.6) | 144 (61.0) | 0.017 |
| >1h | 178 (30.4) | 92 (39.0) | |
| Skin-to-skin contact within 10 minutes after birth | |||
| Yes | 527 (89.9) | 201 (85.2) | 0.052 |
| No | 59 (10.1) | 35 (14.8) | |
| Knowledge about breastfeeding recommendationsb | |||
| Yes | 511 (87.2) | 197 (83.5) | 0.162 |
| No | 75 (12.8) | 39 (16.5) | |
| Perception of insufficient breast milk | |||
| Yes | 151 (25.8) | 182 (77.1) | <0.001 |
| No | 435 (74.2) | 54 (22.9) | |
| Breastfeeding room at workplacec | |||
| Yes | 92 (28.7) | 39 (24.5) | 0.339 |
| No | 229 (71.3) | 120 (75.5) | |
Data are presented as median (range) or number (percentage)
Abbreviations: BMI body mass index, EBF exclusively breastfeeding
aP-value was based on Mann-Whitney U test for non-normally distributed continuous variables, and the x2 test or Fisher’s exact test for categorical variables
b“Yes” meant knowing all three WHO recommendations
cFrom the full-time employed mothers (n=321 in EBF, n=159 in non-EBF)