# Presentation: 525593

## National Breastfeeding    Awareness CampaignResults Babies Were Born To Be Breastfed! 	

**Suzanne G. Haynes, PhD**
- Senior Science Advisor
- Office on Women’s Health (OWH)
- US Department of Health and Human Services

## National Breastfeeding    Awareness Campaign Table of Contents

- Campaign Overview
- Campaign Background
- Campaign Results

## Campaign Overview

- OWH committed funding in 2002 to a National Breastfeeding Awareness Campaign and worked with Ad Council to implement
- Overall goal: increase the proportion of mothers who breastfeed their babies
- Early postpartum period from 69% to 75%
- From 33% to 50% still breastfeeding at 6 months postpartum by the year 2010 (HP 2010)
- Focus on exclusive breastfeeding at initiation and for 6 months

## Campaign BackgroundPre-Campaign Research Findings 

**There was no clearly understood duration goal for breastfeeding **
**Breastfeeding Moms shared a sense of pride and empowerment for their achievement**
**Everyday women who have successfully breastfed could be strong role models**
**Breastfeeding was seen as the “ideal,” not the standard. There was no perceived real disadvantage if you didn’t breastfeed **

**Recommendation that the constant message of breastfeeding “exclusively for 6 months” be used in all communications **
**Give women the sense that they have what it takes to breastfeed**
**Breastfeeding benefits need to be recast to have greater perceived consequence**
**Breastfeeding must be established as today’s popular/ standard practice**

*Campaign Goals** *

**Notes:**
Pain, latching problems, etc. are practical barriers for many.
Best addressed by information/education from health organizations rather than advertising

Other major barrier that limits duration is “returning to work”.
Practical complexity (e.g., lack of nursing rooms) best addressed via dialogue with business community

Therefore, “returning to work”, for many, becomes a practical time/convenient excuse to wean.

## Campaign ResultsBreastfeeding Post-Wave Tracking Report-Ad Council

| What |  |                         METHODOLOGY
Survey tracking report for the Breastfeeding public service advertising (PSA) campaign |
| --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |
| When |  | Continuous tracking of Awareness (n=1498)
		October 12, 2003 - May 15, 2004
Pre-wave Survey- Attitudes/Behavior & Ad Recall  (N-465)   
	April 18, 2004 - May 15, 2004
Post-wave Survey-Attitudes/Behavior & Recall (N=460)
	April 8-19, 2005 |
|  |  |  |
| Who |  | National sample, men and women, aged 18+  with oversampling of African Americans, Hispanics, and persons with children under 18  |
|  |  |  |
| How |  |  RDD Computer assisted telephone survey |

##  Awareness of Breastfeeding

**38% of adults say they have recently heard, seen, or read something about breastfeeding. This increased from 28% in 2004. **
**Most people had recently seen, heard, or read about breastfeeding on TV or in a magazine.**

|  |  |  | % |  |  |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Total Awareness |  |  | 38 |  |  |  |  |
| Base: Asked cause |  |  | (460) |   |   |   |   |
| Sources of Awareness |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|  | TV |  |  |  | Newspapers |  |  |
|  |  | TV program | 24 |  |  | Newspaper article | 16 |
|  |  | TV commercial | 24 |  |  | Newspaper ad | 9 |
|  |  | TV unspecified | 23 |  |  | Newspaper unspecified | 10 |
|  | Magazines |  |  |  | Radio |  |  |
|  |  | Magazine article | 20 |  |  | Radio program | 6 |
|  |  | Magazine ad | 8 |  |  | Radio commercial | 3 |
|  |  | Magazine unspecified | 16 |  |  | Radio unspecified | 5 |
|  | From your doctor or health care professional |  | 3 |  | Billboards or outdoor posters |  | 7 |
|  | Internet or Web |  | 14 |  | Some other place |  | 8 |
| Base: Aware of cause |  |  | (176) |  |  |  |  |

*Q:**	**Please think about all the different places you have seen, heard or read about *_*breastfeeding*_ *recently, including all of the different kinds of advertising, publicity, and other activities that talk about it.  Have you seen, heard or read anything about *_*breastfeeding*_ *anywhere recently?     *
*Q:**  **	**Was that.......?*

**Notes:**
TV unspecified	36	23	      Newspaper unspec. 	28	10
Magazine unspec.	35	16	      Radio unspecified	12	 5

## Best Way to Feed a Baby

***Best Way to Feed a Baby***

***Q:******	******Which ***_***one***_*** of the following statements is closest to your opinion? The best way to feed a baby is...***** **

**Significantly more people felt that breastfeeding was the best way to feed a baby in 2005 (64%) than the previous two years (54% in 2004 and 39% in 2003).**

## Recommended Number of Months to Exclusively Breastfeed

**Q:  ****	****What do you think is the recommended number of months to exclusively breastfeed a baby meaning the baby is only fed breastmilk?****	**

## Infant Formula is as Good as Breast Milk

***Q:******	******How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statements? Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, neither agree nor disagree, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree...? ***

|  |  |  |  | Pre-wave                       04/04 | Post-wave                       04/05 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |  | % | % |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Top 2 boxes (strongly/somewhat agree) |  |  |  | 30 | 24 |
|  | Strongly agree |  |  | 9 | 5 |
|  | Somewhat agree |  |  | 21 | 18 |
| Neither agree nor disagree |  |  |  | 4 | 7 |
| Bottom 2 boxes (strongly/somewhat disagree) |  |  |  | 58 | 62 |
|  | Somewhat disagree |  |  | 33 | 24 |
|  | Strongly disagree |  |  | 25 | 38 |
| Base: Total |  |  |  | (465) | (460) |

## Overview of Specific Health Benefits

**There was a small increase in the percentage of respondents who felt that babies who were breastfed would get ****fewer ear infections (48% ******** 54%) and would be ****less likely to get diarrhea (39% ******** 44%).**
**Responses were consistent with pre-wave levels on the risks of respiratory illness and obesity.**

**Strongly/Somewhat agree that If a baby is breastfed, s/he will be less likely to...**

## Breastfeeding Habits Among Women with Children

**Q:****	****Do you have children (of any age)?**
**Q:****	****Have you ever breastfed a child?**

**Do you have children of any age?**

**78% of women surveyed in 2004 and 79% of women in 2005 had children.**
**Of those women, 63%  in 2004 and 73%  in 2005 had ever breastfed one of their children, a significant increase.**

**No**
**21%**

**Yes**
**78%**

_**2004**_

_**2005**_

**Base: Females *****(224)***

**Base: Females *****(235)***

**Have you ever breastfed a child?**
**Yes – 68%**
**No – 32%**

**Have you ever breastfed a child?**
**Yes – 73%**
**No – 26%**

**Base: Females *****(175)***

**Base: Females *****(184)***

## Comfort Level in the Following Situations Among Males

**Very comfortable**

**Somewhat comfortable**

**Neither comfortable nor uncomfortable**

**Somewhat uncomfortable**

**Very uncomfortable**

**2004**

**2005**

**2004**

**2005**

**Seeing a woman breastfeed her **_**baby in a park, store, or mall**_

**If you had a child, having your **_**own baby breastfed in public**_

**Comfort Level in the Following Situations Among **_**Males**_

**Q:  ****	****Using 1 to mean 'Very Comfortable" and 5 to mean "Very Uncomfortable", how comfortable would you be in the following situations?**

## Comfort Level in the Following Situations Among Females

***Comfort Level in the Following Situations Among ***_***Females***_

***Q:  ******	******Using 1 to mean 'Very Comfortable" and 5 to mean "Very Uncomfortable", how comfortable would you be in the following situations?***

**Very comfortable**

**Somewhat comfortable**

**Neither comfortable nor uncomfortable**

**Somewhat uncomfortable**

**Very uncomfortable**

**2004**

**2004**

**2005**

**Seeing a woman breastfeed her **_**baby in a park, store, or mall**_

**Breastfeeding your baby in a **_**park, store, or mall**_

## Ad Recall: Differences Between Those Who Had and Had Not Seen the PSAs

***: significantly greater at the 95% level.**

**Respondents who had seen at least one of the PSAs were significantly more likely than those who had not to strongly/somewhat agree that breastfeeding reduces a child’s chances of:**
**Ear infections (67% vs. 52%)***
**Obesity (48% vs. 35%)***
**Respiratory illness (65% vs. 49%)***
**And they were more likely to agree strongly that breastfeeding reduces a baby’s chance of getting diarrhea (35% vs. 22%)***
**Ad aware respondents were significantly more likely to strongly/somewhat *****disagree***** that formula is as good as breast milk (75% vs. 59%)***
**Though it was not the objective of the PSAs, women who had seen the ads were also more likely to be comfortable breastfeeding in public (59% very/somewhat comfortable, vs. 39% of those who did not see the ads)*; or seeing other women breastfeed their in public (73% vs. 55%)*.**

## Monthly Website and Warmline Usage

- Website: _[www.womenshealth.gov](http://www.womenshealth.gov/breastfeeding)__[/breastfeeding](http://www.womenshealth.gov/breastfeeding)_
- Warmline: 1-800-994-9662
- 					   Website    Warmline
- Pre-wave    May,2004     28,886        141
- Post-wave   May,2005    40,144         233

## Conclusions 

- Respondents generally understand the importance of and recommendations about breastfeeding, and awareness and attitudes are improving over time.
- Awareness of messages about breastfeeding rose from 28% to 38%
- Those who either correctly identified 6 months as the recommended length to exclusively breastfeed a baby or said the recommended duration was longer than 6 months rose from 52% to 63%
- The number agreeing that babies should be exclusively breastfed in the first 6 months increased from pre-wave (53%) to post-wave (62%)
- Significantly more women surveyed had breastfed a child in the 04/05 study (73%) than in the 04/04 study (63%)