New moms are four times more likely to stop breastfeeding after eight weeks, than mothers who have received text message support, according to a groundbreaking study by Queensland University of Technology.
As part of an eight-week pilot project led by Associate Professor Rebekah Russell-Bennett and Dr Danielle Gallegos, 130 moms across Australia were given breastfeeding support via texting – also known as short message service or SMS. The SMS was also linked to the counseling service, which offered free telephone assistance about breastfeeding for new mothers.
At the beginning of the study, 83 percent of women fully breastfed their newborns, compared to the national average of 62 percent.
After eight weeks, there was only a four percent decrease in women who were fully breastfeeding, compared to a decline in the national average by 16 percent, which showed a huge gap between the study’s 79 percent still breastfeeding versus the national average of 46 percent.
Professor Russell-Bennett said the SMS program helped significantly improve breastfeeding rates: "Many women said they looked forward to receiving the messages as it made them feel like they were part of a group.”
"They also said the messages offered information ‘that told me things were normal,’” she added. “Many women who find they are struggling with breastfeeding feel like they are failing, but by receiving the text messages they get the support they need."