U.S. Initiation Rates May Be Up, But Norway And Sweden Are In The Lead

The breastfeeding initiation rates may be up to 77 percent in the United States, but Norway and Sweden far surpass those statistics. Why? Perhaps it's the simple fact that these countries are extremely progressive and that they pride themselves on having a very well-educated population.

Dr. Susan Markel states, "...in Norway, mothers breastfeed on buses, in parks, cafes, and stores. With rare exceptions, none leave the hospital without breast-feeding." In addition, their duration rates are significantly higher, with 80 percent still breastfeeding at 6 months, compared to only 32 percent in the United States. One reason, according to Markel, may be that our maternity leaves are very short and busy lives interfere with nursing. There's got to be something said for the fact that Norwegian mothers get 10-month paid maternity leaves!

Aside from prenatal breastfeeding eduation, one major step to achieving the Norwegian breastfeeding standard is to "Ban the Bags" in hospitals. We really should treat breastfeeding as the norm, rather than the exception.