TUESDAY, March 4, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Mothers who are given access to virtual breastfeeding support report more breastfeeding than peers who did not receive such help, according to a study published online Feb. 27 in JAMA Network Open.
Lori Uscher-Pines, Ph.D., from RAND Corporation in Arlington, Virginia, and colleagues assessed the impact of video telelactation services on breastfeeding duration and exclusivity. The analysis included 1,911 pregnant individuals randomly assigned to receive access to a smartphone app with on-demand access to lactation consultants 24 hours a day via video visits or to a control arm, which received an infant care e-book.
The researchers found that 48.8 percent assigned to the treatment group used telelactation services. The proportion who reported any breastfeeding at 24 weeks was 70.6 percent in the treatment group and 66.8 percent in the control group, while the proportion with exclusive breastfeeding at 24 weeks was 46.9 percent in the treatment group and 44.1 percent in the control arm. Among Black participants, the proportion reporting any breastfeeding at 24 weeks was 65.1 percent in the treatment group and 57.4 percent in the control group, while the proportion reporting breastfeeding exclusively at 24 weeks was 42.7 and 33.9 percent, respectively.
“The results suggest that telelactation services could be a component of a comprehensive strategy to reduce racial disparities in breastfeeding rates,” the authors write.
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