Article Figures & Data
Tables
Characteristic Value Age of infant, No. (%) <2 mo 11 (6.0) 2–3.9 mo 112 (60.9) 4–5.9 mo 61 (33.2) Race, No. (%) White 175 (95.1) Asian 9 (4.9) Hispanic 5 (2.7) Black or African American 3 (1.6) American Indian/Alaskan Native 2 (1.1) First-time mothers, No. (%) 73 (40.1) Number of children, median (range) 2 (1–8) Practice location, No. (%) Urban 108 (58.7) Suburban 70 (38.0) Rural 7 (3.8) Feeding characteristics Breast milk only, No. (%) 140 (76.1) Breast milk and formula, No. (%) 44 (23.9) Supplementing infant with vitamin D, No. (%) 101 (55.2) Age when infant began supplementation, median (range), wk 2 (0–17) Mother taking supplement with vitamin D, No. (%) 138 (75.8) Themes Quotes Lack of knowledge about supplementation “I didn’t know I should”
“Too young – will start soon”
“Never even knew vitamin D supplementation was needed”Assumption that fortified milk provides infant with needed vitamin D “I gave vitamin D supplement when she was breast milk-fed, provider told us to discontinue when formula started”
“My baby went to exclusive soy formula at 2 months old, which has vitamin D supplement”
“Baby formula has all that is needed and recommended”
“Stopped giving it when I stopped nursing and started to give formula”Assumption that breast milk provides infant with needed nutrition “Find it hard to believe the whole population is so deficient in Vitamin D, especially in breast milk”
“I feel like my breast milk was designed by God to give my baby what she needs. Babies have been fine and healthy without Vitamin D supplementation for generations”Inconvenience/Dislike “It causes her to spit up”
“I forget to because she doesn’t take it well and doesn’t seem to like the taste”
Additional Files
The Article in Brief
Maternal Preferences for Vitamin D Supplementation in Breastfed Infants
Tom D. Thacher , and colleagues
Background Although daily vitamin D supplementation is recommended for breastfed infants, adherence to this recommendation is poor. This study explores mothers' preferences for vitamin D supplementation.
What This Study Found Less than one-half of infants in the study received the recommended daily vitamin D supplementation. Given a choice, most mothers prefer to supplement themselves to enrich their breast milk with vitamin D rather than supplement their infants. Among 140 mothers with exclusively breastfed infants and 44 who used both breast milk and formula milk, 55 percent supplemented their infants with vitamin D, and 42 percent supplemented with the 400 IU recommended. Eighty-eight percent of mothers preferred supplementing themselves rather than their infants, and 57 percent preferred daily to monthly supplementation. Mothers cited safety as most important in choosing a method of supplementation.
Implications
- Taking mothers' preferences into consideration could improve adequate intake of vitamin D in breastfed infants. Because most mothers take a prenatal vitamin after delivery, higher doses of vitamin D (4000-6400 IU daily) could be incorporated into their supplementation routine.
