The Impact of Two Corporate Lactation Programs on the Incidence and Duration of Breast-Feeding by Employed Mothers

Abstract

Purpose.: The goal of this study was to examine the impact of two corporate lactation programs on breast-feeding behavior among employed women. Design.: Breast-feeding behavior was measured for up to one year among women who had given birth during 1989, 1990, 1991, and 1992 and compared with national norms. Setting.: The study was conducted at two corporations: a utilities company with 11,000 employees of which 22% were female with approximately 100 births each year and a space corporation with 3,900 employees of which 31 % were female with approximately 30 births per year. Subjects.: Participants were 187 employees returning to work following maternity leave for a medically uncomplicated birth. Intervention.: Participants collected and stored breast milk using the worksite breast pump room at scheduled times during the workshift and were counseled by a lactation professional throughout the study. Measures.: A questionnaire was used to establish breast-feeding behavior. Duration was reported by the lactation professional. Results.: Since program inception, 75 % of the participants who returned to work while breast-feeding continued until their child was six months old. This represented 139 of the 187 mothers at the two companies. Average duration of breast-feeding overall was 8.1 months. Discussion.: Participants were able to maintain a breast-feeding regimen for at least six months at rates equivalent to the statistical norms for women who are not employed outside the home. This was not an experimental study. Participants were self-selected and there was no control group. On a year-to-year basis, the numbers of participants were relatively small. Results should be corroborated in other companies using true experimental methods before generalizations are attempted.