Background: Breastfeeding practices, such as initiation and exclusive breastfeeding, for the first 6 months of life have a significant importance in terms of public health. The confounding factors associated with breastfeeding practices vary. This study aimed to evaluate the role of fathers in Saudi Arabia concerning their support to breastfeeding.
Methods: This was an analytical cross-sectional study in which the validated Arabic version of the free validated tool by the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative in 2009 (Questionnaire for Breastfeeding Mother) was used. The study employed a nonprobability sampling method and the questionnaire was distributed online to mothers in the community through different breastfeeding facilitators in different hospitals in Madinah, Jeddah, Makkah, Riyadh, and other cities.
Results: The sample size was 584; during antenatal visits, 25% of the fathers received information about breastfeeding, whereas 39% received information about breastfeeding during the postnatal course. Concerning the source of support, husbands alone or with other sources made up 89.1% of the sources of support mothers received for breastfeeding.
Conclusion: Fathers in Saudi Arabia support breastfeeding initiation and practice. Further high-quality studies are needed for better evaluation.
Key words: Breastfeeding, Prenatal, Postnatal, Antenatal, Fathers
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