La lactancia materna en Puerto Rico: patrones tradicionales, tendencias nacionales e estrategias para el futuro / Breast feeding in Puerto Rico: traditional patterns, national trends and future strategies

The Puerto Rican society has gone through profound transformations during the past 50 years. Industrialization and the incorporation of women into the labor force have been accompanied by medicalization of the reproductive process and a progressive reduction in the prevalence of breastfeeding as the cultural norm for nutrition of infants. The data base for 1990 places Puerto Rico significantly below Latin America and the United States in the percentage of reastfed infants. The authors report their experience in the promotion of reastfeeding during the last 5 years. The principal negative factors which inder the beginning and maintenance of successful breastfeeding are of a social nature. The orientation of physicians towards technology underrates the benefits of breastfeeding. The marketing strategies of the corporations which manufacture artificial milk continuously violate the International Code for Marketing of breast Milk Substitutes and disfigure the community's perception on the benefits of breastfeeding. The lack of social and legal support for the breastfeeding working mother frequently prevents her from carrying out successful breastfeeding for the recommended period of time. Strategies are presented for the overturn of the existent barriers which have reduced breastfeeding in Puerto Rico to the present precarious levels

Creencias Hacia la lactancia materna y la actud hacia apoyar la lactancia en público de un grupo de estudiantes de salud de una escuela superior de la Región Educativa de Caguas / Knowledge about breast feeding and attitude to breast feeding in public of a group of high school students in the Caguas Educational Region

The objective of this study was to identify the knowledge and attitudes towards breastfeeding and towards breastfeeding in public of a group of high school students in the Caguas Educational Region. The study design was a descriptive survey. The sample consisted of 101 students gistered in the Health Course. A self administered questionnaire was used to ther the information. Descriptive and inferential statistics (chi quare and t test) were used for data analysis. We found that the majority of the participants have the intention of breastfeeding or supporting breastfeeding for their children. We found, nevertheless, that there were misconceptions regarding breastfeeding hich could develop into barriers for effective breastfeeding. It was also observed that support for breastfeeding varied depending on the location where it took place. Support was greater if it was done in non-public places. In inclusion, it became evident that there is a need for educational programs with correct information on breastfeeding and the importance of breastfeeding in public