Lactation Consultant Support from Late Pregnancy with an Educational Intervention at 4 Months of Age Delays the Introduction of Complementary Foods in a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Although the WHO recommends that complementary feeding in infants should begin at 6 mo of age, it often begins before this in developed countries.

Objective: Our objective was to determine whether lactation consultant (LC) support, with educational resources given at 4-mo postpartum, can delay the introduction of complementary foods until around 6 mo of age.

Methods: A total of 802 mother-infant pairs were recruited from the single maternity hospital serving Dunedin, New Zealand (59% response rate) and randomly assigned to the following: 1) usual care (control group); 2) infant sleep education intervention (Sleep); 3) food, activity, and breastfeeding intervention (FAB); or 4) combination (both) intervention (Combo).