Reimagining Racial Trauma as a Barrier to Breastfeeding Versus Childhood Trauma and Depression Among African American Mothers.

Although breastfeeding provides benefits for mothers and infants, multiple factors prevent women from breastfeeding. This article aims to explore the role of mothers' personal and contextual risk factors to breastfeeding rates with a special emphasis on understanding breastfeeding among African American mothers at 6 months postpartum. This secondary analysis was capitalizing on previously collected postpartum data from a longitudinal cohort study on the consequences of maternal childhood trauma on mother and infant outcomes.

Overcoming Workplace Barriers: A Focus Group Study Exploring African American Mothers' Needs for Workplace Breastfeeding Support.

Background: Persistent racial disparities in breastfeeding show that African American women breastfeed at the lowest rates. Return to work is a critical breastfeeding barrier for African American women who return to work sooner than other ethnic groups and more often encounter unsupportive work environments. They also face psychosocial burdens that make breastfeeding at work uniquely challenging.