Abstract: Recommendations On How to Use Health Mobile Technology to Promote Breastfeeding "What the Evidence Suggests” (2010 National Conference on Health Communication, Marketing, and Media)

Gareth Forde, MD, PhD, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Grand Rapids Medical Education and Research Center, Grand Rapids, MI, Colin Forde, MS, Department of Communications, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, Jabali Wells, MD, MPH, Department of Economics, London School of Economics, London, England, Aviane Forde, MPH, Grand Rapids Medical Education and Research Center, Grand Rapids, MI, Barbara Bradley, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids and Stephen Rechner, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, MI

Theoretical Background and research questions/hypothesis: Breastfeeding confers many benefits to infants and mothers. Infants that are breastfed have fewer ear infections, less gastrointestinal illness and are less likely to become obese in early childhood. Women that breastfeed their children return to their pre-pregnancy weight quicker, are less likely to develop certain breast and ovarian cancers, and are less likely to become depressed. Despite these well-characterized benefits, breastfeeding rates continue to be low among African Americans (AA), those with less than a high-school education, and those in low-income groups. The Healthy People 2010 goals were to increase breastfeeding rates in the early post-partum period to 75%, 50% at 6 months and 25% at 12 months. The Healthy People 2020 goals for breastfeeding remain the same as the 2010 goals- only 10 states met all the objectives. In Michigan, CDC data reports that rates of breast-feeding for AAs, Whites and Hispanics are 56, 42 and 73 %. Racial and socioeconomic differences in breastfeeding rates are due to: (1) lack of knowledge about feeding practices and benefits, (2) lack of social support, (3) financial barriers to obtaining breast pumps and supplies, and (4) inability to pump and store breast milk at work or school. To increase breastfeeding rates, targeted interventions need to incorporate social marketing techniques that change perceptions and behaviors about infant feeding.

Methods and Results (informing the conceptual analysis): This presentation discusses formative research findings from a retrospective cohort study of over 500 participants on breastfeeding intent and proposes the development of a health mobile technology (HMT) package to deliver prenatal messages to increase breastfeeding.

Conclusions: By using this data, we describe a new method for breastfeeding promotion in communities with historically low feeding rates.

Implications for research and/or practice: This research shows the significance of evidence based research in understanding the perceived barriers, attitudes, gaps in knowledge and beliefs about breastfeeding by aggrieved communities.

23356 Recommendations On How to Use Health Mobile Technology to Promote Breastfeeding "What the Evidence Suggests”