Determinants of breastfeeding among rural Moslem women in Israel.

To characterize breast feeding patterns among rural Moslem women in Israel, a cohort of 429 women were interviewed 3 and 6 months after delivery. The study participants were randomly recruited from four exclusively Moslem villages in Israel's northern and central districts and represented 10% of new mothers in the study area. Although 96% initiated breast feeding, only 57% continued beyond 6 months. Multivariate analysis indicated that breast feeding for more than 6 months was significantly associated with high religiosity (odds ratio (OR), 2.31), existence of sons in the family (OR, 1.75), low social class as defined by husband's occupation (OR, 1.71), a strong nationalistic orientation (OR, 1.72), traditional attitudes and practices (OR, 1.68), and less than 9 years of education (OR, 1.64). The trend of restricted breast feeding documented in this study resembles that occurring in rural areas of developing countries that are undergoing economic development and modernization.