Infant formula feeding practices and the role of advice and support: an exploratory qualitative study

BMC Pediatrics

Table 1 Participant Characteristics

Characteristics	n = 24
Age of mothers (years)	Range 21–39
20–24	3
25–29	8
30–34	7
35–39	6
Age of infant (months)	Range 9–11 months
9	1
10	15
11	8
Infant gender
Male	7
Female	17
Number of children
1	10
2+	14
Mother’s education
Tertiary (university) or higher	11
Trade or diploma	8
High school	5
Location – state
NSW	5
NT	1
QLD	5
VIC	10
ACT	3
Location – Remoteness^a
Major City (RA1)	13
Inner Regional (RA2)	9
Outer Regional (RA3)	2
SEIFA – decile^b
< 2	2
3–4	7
5–6	2
7–8	6
> 9	6
Infant feeding
Formula fed^c	6
Switched early^d	7
Switched late^e	5
Mixed fed^f	6

^aBased on the Australian Standard Geographical Classification – Remoteness Area (2006) which classifies from RA1 Major City to RA5 Very Remote [50, 51]
^bSocio-economic Indexes for Areas 2011 by post code, the decile is the rank order of all areas across Australia -this is a measures are a calculation of the location and not necessarily indicative of individuals in the location [52]
^cInfant was fully formula fed within first 6 weeks
^dInfant commenced formula between 6 weeks - 6 months and was fully formula fed by 6 months
^eInfant commenced formula after 6 months
^fMixed fed between birth and 6 months (any duration) and continued mixed feeding or moved to full formula feeding after 6 months

ISSN: 1471-2431