Explaining the increase in breastfeeding at hospital discharge in Ireland, 2004–2010

Despite a steady increase in the rate of breastfeeding in Ireland over the period 2004–2010 (from 46.8 % in 2004 to 55.7 % in 2010), Irish rates of breastfeeding are still low by international standards. Over this period, the characteristics of mothers and babies changed, with mothers increasingly older, having fewer children and increasingly born outside the Republic of Ireland. The purpose of this paper is to understand the extent to which...