Breastfeeding disparities and recommended strategies to end them in New York

Objective

The objective of this study was to identify strategies to address breastfeeding disparities across New York in the United States.

Methods

Data were collected from August-December 2021 using a qualitative research design that included 45 key informant interviews and 253 online questionnaires.

Results

Ninety-six percent of participants lived in or represented New York, and four percent were national experts. Participants discussed the factors contributing to breastfeeding disparities across the social ecological continuum. They identified New York subgroups most likely to report lower rates of breastfeeding initiation and/or continuation, including: certain racial and ethnic groups; individuals working in certain employment sectors or living in specific geographic areas; people with disabilities; and the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and more (LGBTQIA+) community. Recommendations included addressing social and commercial determinants of health and modifying the healthcare and workplace sectors with an emphasis on policy changes.

Conclusions

The findings from this study emphasize the need to address systemic and structural factors impacting breastfeeding disparities. This article makes a novel contribution by providing recommendations that can be implemented collectively across relevant settings to address breastfeeding disparities in a state with one of the largest and most diverse populations.