Women, Infant and Children (WIC) peer counselor contact with first time breastfeeding mothers.
OBJECTIVE
This study was designed to determine whether singleton women who had not previously breastfed and who had a women, infant and children (WIC) peer counselor were more likely to initiate breastfeeding than women not exposed to the WIC peer counselor.


DESIGN AND SAMPLE
The retrospective cross-sectional study used data from the 2009 Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) WIC Infant Feeding Practices Survey (IFPS) administered through 73 local WIC agencies. Of the 5,427 responses to the 2009 Texas DSHS WIC IFP Survey, 56.6% (N = 3,070) were included in this study.


MEASURES
The Texas DSHS WIC IFPS, a 55-item survey with multiple-choice and two open-ended questions, was used to evaluate breastfeeding beliefs, attitudes, and practices among women receiving WIC services.


RESULTS
Women who had peer counselor contact during pregnancy, in the hospital, and after delivery were more likely to initiate breastfeeding than women without such contacts, OR = 1.36, 2.06, 1.85, respectively.


CONCLUSION
Women's decision to initiate breastfeeding is significantly associated with WIC peer counselor contacts. Continued WIC peer counselor program services may increase breastfeeding initiation rates among WIC participants.
['Campbell|Lisa A|LA|', 'Wan|Jim|J|', 'Speck|Patricia M|PM|', 'Hartig|Margaret T|MT|']
D000328:Adult D001942:Breast Feeding D002648:Child D003376:Counseling D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies D003625:Data Collection D005260:Female D006801:Humans D007223:Infant D009035:Mothers D010379:Peer Group D011247:Pregnancy D015397:Program Evaluation D012189:Retrospective Studies D013781:Texas D055815:Young Adult
WIC peer counselors breastfeeding initiation first time mothers infant health