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Breast-feeding and fertility among Philippine women: trends, mechanisms and impact

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 September 2011

Zelda C. Zablan
Affiliation:
Population Institute, University of the Philippines, Manila

Extract

In pre-transitional societies, contraceptive practice is usually low or absent and prolonged breast-feeding has been identified as the major factor in keeping marital fertility levels below the biological maximum (Bongaarts, 1978), so that the length of birth intervals is the strongest determinant of completed family size.

In transitional societies there is accumulating evidence that, with increasing modernization, the percentage of women who initiate breast-feeding and the duration of breast-feeding are declining (Jelliffe & Jelliffe, 1972; McCann et al., 1981; Rosa, 1976). Shorter durations of breast-feeding are observed for women who are more educated, belong to the upper socioeconomic class and live in urban areas (Jain & Sun, 1972; Lesthaeghe & Page, 1980).

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1985

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