Breastfeeding: Biocultural Perspectives
“This volume makes an important contribution to the literature on the biocultural nature of breastfeeding, a behavior that is critical to the survival of the human species…. [T]his collection provides a wealth of information about the interplay of culture and biology as they relate to breastfeeding and its influence on maternal and infant health. Many of the chapters have implications for the development of policy relating to the support of breastfeeding, such as the Family Leave Act and health care reform. This unique volume will thus be useful for health care professionals and health policy makers, as well as biological and cultural anthropologists.”—Anne L. Wright,Medical Anthropology Quarterly“One hundred years ago, the vast majority of infants in the United States were breastfed. They were typically weaned anywhere between two and four years of age. Today the statistics are quite different. At the present time, about one-half of infants in the United States are breastfed, and most are weaned by the time they are six months old.Breastfeeding: Biocultural Perspectivesexamines the biological and cultural reasons for this shift in behavior…. This volume of fifteen chapters, by almost as many authors, provides readers with an abundance of information on breastfeeding.”—Christine A. Behrendt,The Quarterly Review of Biology