High and Increased Positive Public Opinions About Supports for Breastfeeding, United States, 2015-2024

Details

• Personal Author:
  Marks, Kristin J. ; Grap, Mary E. ; Chen, Jian ; Shi, Dallas S. ; Li, Ruowei
• Description:
  Because breastfeeding behaviors are influenced by social norms, we examined public opinions toward societal supports for breastfeeding using data from the 2015 and 2024 SummerStyles surveys (N = 4127 and N = 4371, respectively, from the noninstitutionalized US population). In 2024, 81.9% of respondents agreed "there should be paid maternity leave for workers," 73.5% believed "women should have the right to breastfeed in public places," 66.9% agreed "women should be encouraged to breastfeed," and 65.9% agreed "a mother needs a lot of support to breastfeed her baby"-up 12, 11, 5, and 17 percentage points, respectively, from 2015. High and increased positive public opinions about supports for breastfeeding suggest heightened approval for breastfeeding-supportive programs and policies.
• Subjects:
  Breast Feeding Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Breastfeeding; Maternal And Child Health; Nutrition; Parenting; Women's Health Breastfeeding; Behavior; Sociological Factors; Policy; Families; Nutrition; Women;
• ISSN:
  0033-3549
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; Maryland ; Georgia ; Tennessee ; Chicago Region [OSHA] ; Philadelphia Region [OSHA] ; Atlanta Region [OSHA]
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DFSE - Division of Field Studies and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  4 pdf pages
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20071158
• Citation:
  Public Health Rep 2026 Jan; :[Epub ahead of print]
• Email:
  kma8@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2026
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Public Health Reports
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:8af65097290247546ac7fa94f4940a2e7db8b1aeee310ca136b6a698bd3149b7708ff8ccf46b03eb083c01b28c365e0baf46d062d7dcdca02019231aac1e3055
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/257925/cdc_257925_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 196.09 KB ]