Health literacy and its relation to continuing with breastfeeding at six months post-partum in a sample of Spanish women

Aim: To explore the relation between health literacy (HL) and continuing breastfeeding (BF) at 6 months post-partum.

Design: Observational, longitudinal and prospective study between December 2018-May 2019. The STROBE checklist was used.

Methods: 114 mother/baby pairings from a Spanish Hospital were included. Mothers' health literacy was studied with the Newest Vital Sign and Short Assessment of Health Literacy for Spanish Adults 50 (SAHLSA-50). Before hospital discharge, BF efficiency was studied using the LATCH BF score and BF continuity was followed for 6 months. Survival analysis and Cox regression were done.

Results: Health literacy levels and BF effectiveness were adequate before hospital discharge. At 6 months post-partum, less than half the sample still exclusively breastfed. The main reason for early exclusive BF cessation was lower than the recommended newborn weight gain. The HL level acted as a protective factor against abandonment of BF.