Primary Care Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement

Authors

Wanda K. Nicholson, George Washington University, Washington, DC.
Michael Silverstein, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
John B. Wong, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts.
David Chelmow, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond.
Tumaini Rucker Coker, University of Washington, Seattle.
Esa M. Davis, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore.
Alicia Fernandez, University of California, San Francisco.
Ericka Gibson, Kaiser Permanente, Atlanta, Georgia.
Carlos Roberto Jaén, The University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio.
Marie Krousel-Wood, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana.
Sei Lee, University of California, San Francisco.
Goutham Rao, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio.
John M. Ruiz, University of Arizona, Tucson.
James Stevermer, University of Missouri, Columbia.
Joel Tsevat, The University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio.
Sandra Millon Underwood, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.
Sarah Wiehe, Indiana University, Bloomington.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

4-8-2025

Journal

JAMA

DOI

10.1001/jama.2025.3650

Abstract

IMPORTANCE: The association between breastfeeding and health benefits in children has been previously well established; health benefits have also been found for women who breastfeed. However, breastfeeding rates in the US are relatively modest; as of 2021, 59.8% of infants at age 6 months are breastfed and 27.2% of infants at that age are exclusively breastfed. OBJECTIVE: The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) commissioned a systematic review to evaluate the evidence on the benefits and harms of primary care behavioral counseling interventions to support breastfeeding. POPULATION: Adolescents and adults who are pregnant or postpartum, and their infants and children. EVIDENCE ASSESSMENT: The USPSTF concludes with moderate certainty that primary care behavioral counseling interventions to support breastfeeding have a moderate net benefit. RECOMMENDATION: The USPSTF recommends providing interventions or referrals, during pregnancy and after birth, to support breastfeeding. (B recommendation).

APA Citation

Nicholson, Wanda K.; Silverstein, Michael; Wong, John B.; Chelmow, David; Coker, Tumaini Rucker; Davis, Esa M.; Fernandez, Alicia; Gibson, Ericka; Jaén, Carlos Roberto; Krousel-Wood, Marie; Lee, Sei; Rao, Goutham; Ruiz, John M.; Stevermer, James; Tsevat, Joel; Underwood, Sandra Millon; and Wiehe, Sarah, "Primary Care Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement" (2025). GW Authored Works. Paper 7087.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/7087

Department

Prevention and Community Health