Skip to main content

Intensive Parenting: Fertility and Breastfeeding Duration in the United States

Demography volume 55, pages 1681–1704 (2018)Cite this article

Abstract

Using 30 years of longitudinal data from a nationally representative cohort of women, we study the association between breastfeeding duration and completed fertility, fertility expectations, and birth spacing. We find that women who breastfeed their first child for five months or longer are a distinct group. They have more children overall and higher odds of having three or more children rather than two, compared with women who breastfeed for shorter durations or not at all. Expected fertility is associated with initiating breastfeeding but not with how long mothers breastfeed. Thus, women who breastfeed longer do not differ significantly from other breastfeeding women in their early fertility expectations. Rather, across the life course, these women achieve and even exceed their earlier fertility expectations. Women who breastfeed for shorter durations (1–21 weeks) are more likely to fall short of their expected fertility than to achieve or exceed their expectations, and they are significantly less likely than women who breastfeed for longer durations (≥22 weeks) to exceed their expected fertility. In contrast, women who breastfeed longer are as likely to exceed as to achieve their earlier expectations, and the difference between their probability of falling short versus exceeding their fertility expectations is relatively small and at the boundary of statistical significance (p = .096). These differences in fertility are not explained by differences in personal and family resources, including family income or labor market attachment. Our findings suggest that breastfeeding duration may serve as a proxy for identifying a distinct approach to parenting. Women who breastfeed longer have reproductive patterns quite different than their socioeconomic position would predict. They both have more children and invest more time in those children.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Notes

  1. Breastfeeding can also elicit hormonal changes that increase mother-infant bonding (Uvnäs-Moberg and Eriksson 1996), which might increase future fertility.

  2. We also used the NLSY sample-specific weights and obtained the same results.

  3. Cumulative retention rates in the NLSY79 exceeded 90 % in 1993, when respondents were aged 28–36, and exceeded 80 % in 2000, when respondents were aged 35–43. With the military and poor white oversamples excluded, the sample includes 874 women who had no children. For 81 % of these women, the NLSY79 includes fairly complete information on their fertility. The remaining 19 % (n = 169) left the survey before year 2000. These 169 women were observed to a median age of 27, which represents approximately the 80th percentile of the age at first birth distribution for the sample. Only 9 % (n = 80) of the 874 women we categorize as not bearing children left the survey before age 27.

  4. Although the minimum gap between this measure of early expected fertility and first birth is 2 years, the median gap is 7 years, and the interquartile range is 4–11 years.

  5. Our alternative approaches included using the distribution quartiles rather than tertiles and dividing the categories into two alternative different intervals: 0, 1–8, 9–26, 27–52, 53–208 weeks and 0, 1–13, 14–26, 27–52, 53–208 weeks.

  6. In this sample of almost 3,700 mothers, only 19 women breastfed for two years, and 11 breastfed beyond two years.

  7. We omit from Fig. 2 the 11 women who breastfed beyond two years. Because not initiating (breastfeeding 0 weeks) is such a distinct and large group, we plot this mean directly from the data and use the polynomial smoother only for the remainder of the breastfeeding distribution shown (1 to 104 weeks).

  8. Simply adjusting for race/ethnicity, and nothing else, makes this contrast significant as well.

  9. In this subsample, women who breastfeed 22 weeks or longer have significantly higher average fertility than all other groups even without controls for any other characteristics. The categorical contrasts to women who do not initiate breastfeeding are also significant without controls, as are the contrasts for having three or more children (regressions not shown).

References

  • Allen, J. A., Li, R., Scanlon, K. S., Perrine, C. G., Chen, J., Odom, E. C., & Black, C. (2013). Progress in increasing breastfeeding and reducing racial/ethnic differences—United States, 2000–2008 births. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 62, 77–80.

    Google Scholar 

  • Apple, R. (1987). Mothers and medicine: A social history of infant feeding, 1890–1950. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arlotti, J. P., Cottrell, B. H., Lee, S. H., & Curtin, J. J. (1998). Breastfeeding among low-income women with and without peer support. Journal of Community Health Nursing, 15, 163–178.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Astone, N. M., Nathanson, C., Schoen, R., & Kim, Y. (1999). Family demography, social theory, and investment in social capital. Population and Development Review, 25, 1–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Avishai, O. (2007). Managing the lactating body: The breast-feeding project and privileged motherhood. Qualitative Sociology, 30, 135–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bachrach, C. A. (2014). Culture and demography: From reluctant bedfellows to committed partners. Demography, 51, 3–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bachrach, C., & Morgan, P. (2013). A cognitive–social model of fertility intentions. Population and Development Review, 39, 459–485.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Becker, G. S. (1991). A treatise on the family (Enlarged ed). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

  • Becker, G. S., & Tomes, N. (1976). Child endowments, and the quantity and quality of children (NBER Working Paper No. 123). Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research.

  • Bianchi, S. M. (2000). Maternal employment and time with children: Dramatic change or surprising continuity? Demography, 37, 401–414.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blake, J. (1974). Can we believe recent data on birth expectations in the United States? Demography, 11, 25–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bledsoe, C., Banja, F., & Hill, A. G. (1998). Reproductive mishaps and Western contraception: An African challenge to fertility theory. Population and Development Review, 24, 15–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bledsoe, C. H., Hill, A. G., D’Alessandro, U., & Langerock, P. (1994). Constructing natural fertility: The use of Western contraceptive technologies in rural Gambia. Population and Development Review, 21, 81–113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bongaarts, J. (2001). Fertility and reproductive preferences in post-transitional societies. Population and Development Review, 27S, 260–281.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bongaarts, J., & Potter, R. G. (1979). Fertility effect of seasonal migration and seasonal variation in fecundability: Test of a useful approximation under more general conditions. Demography, 16, 475–479.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bourdieu, P., & Wacquant, L. J. (1992). An invitation to reflexive sociology. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boushey, H. (2008). “Opting out?” The effect of children on women’s employment in the United States. Feminist Economics, 14(1), 1–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Callen, J., & Pinelli, J. (2004). Incidence and duration of breastfeeding for term infants in Canada, United States, Europe, and Australia: A literature review. Birth, 31, 285–292.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, K., & Blake, J. (1956). Social structure and fertility: An analytic framework. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 4, 211–235.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Der, G., Batty, G. D., & Deary, I. J. (2006). Effect of breast feeding on intelligence in children: Prospective study, sibling pairs analysis, and meta-analysis. BMJ, 333, 945. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.38978.699583.55

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Oakland: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greene, W. H. (2000). Econometrics analysis (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hagewen, K., & Morgan, P. (2005). Intended and ideal family size in the United States, 1970–2002. Population and Development Review, 31, 507–527.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hayford, S. (2009). The evolution of fertility expectations over the life course. Demography, 46, 765–783.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hays, S. (1998). The cultural contradictions of motherhood. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hendershot, G. E. (1984). Trends in breast-feeding. Pediatrics, 74, 591–602.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hirschman, C., & Butler, M. (1981). Trends and differentials in breast feeding: An update. Demography, 18, 39–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huber, J. (2007). On the origins of gender inequality. New York, NY: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Iacovou, M., & Tavares, L. P. (2011). Yearning, learning, and conceding: Reasons men and women change their childbearing intentions. Population and Development Review, 37, 89–123.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson-Hanks, J. A. (2015). Populations are composed one event at a time. In P. Kreager, B. Winney, S. Ulijaszek, & C. Capelli (Eds.), Population in the human sciences: Concepts, models, evidence (pp. 238–252). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson-Hanks, J. A., Bachrach, C. A., Morgan, S. P., & Kohler, H.-P. (2011). Understanding family change and cariation: Toward a theory of conjunctural action. Dordrecht, the Netherlands: Springer Science & Business Media.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Kornrich, S., & Furstenberg, F. (2013). Investing in children: Changes in parental spending on children, 1972–2007. Demography, 50, 1–23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kukla, R. (2006). Ethics and ideology in breastfeeding advocacy campaigns. Hypatia, 21(1), 157–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lareau, A. (2003). Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life. Oakland: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Law, J. (2000). The politics of breastfeeding: Assessing risk, dividing labor. Signs, 25, 407–450.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, R., Darling, N., Maurice, E., Barker, L., & Grummer-Strawn, L. M. (2005). Breastfeeding rates in the United States by characteristics of the child, mother, or family: The 2002 National Immunization Survey. Pediatrics, 115, e31–e37. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2004-0481

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martucci, J. (2015). Why breastfeeding?: Natural motherhood in post-war America. Journal of Women's History, 27(2), 110–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morgan, S. P., & King, R. B. (2001). Why have children in the 21st century? Biological predisposition, social coercion, rational choice. European Journal of Population, 17, 3–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morgan, S. P., & Rackin, H. (2010). The correspondence between fertility intentions and behavior in the United States. Population and Development Review, 36, 91–118.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mosley, W. H., & Chen, L. C. (1984). An analytical framework for the study of child survival in developing countries. Population and Development Review, 10, 25–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perrine, C. G., Scanlon, K. S., Li, R., Odom, E., & Grummer-Strawn, L. M. (2012). Baby-friendly hospital practices and meeting exclusive breastfeeding intention. Pediatrics, 130, 54–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rippeyoung, P. L. F., & Noonan, M. C. (2012). Is breastfeeding truly cost free? Income consequences of breastfeeding for women. American Sociological Review, 77, 244–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roe, B., Whittington, L. A., Fein, S. B., & Teisl, M. F. (1999). Is there competition between breast-feeding and maternal employment? Demography, 36, 157–171.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, A. S., Wenjun, Z., & Acosta, A. (2002). Breastfeeding continues to increase into the new millennium. Pediatrics, 110, 1103–1109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schoen, R., Kim, Y. J., Nathanson, C. A., Fields, J., & Astone, N. M. (1997). Why do Americans want children? Population and Development Review, 23, 333–358.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sewell, W. H., Jr. (2005). Logics of history: Social theory and social transformation. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

  • Thulier, D., & Mercer, J. (2009). Variables associated with breastfeeding duration. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing, 38, 259–268.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Uvnäs-Moberg, K., & Eriksson, M. (1996). Breastfeeding: Physiological, endocrine and behavioural adaptations caused by oxytocin and local neurogenic activity in the nipple and mammary gland. Acta Paediatrica, 85, 525–530.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Victora, C. G., Bahl, R., Barros, A. J., França, G. V., Horton, S., Krasevec, J.,... Rollins, N. C. (2016). Breastfeeding in the 21st century: Epidemiology, mechanisms, and lifelong effect. Lancet, 387, 475–490.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wagner, C. L., Wagner, M. T., Ebling, M., Gleaton Chatman, K., Cohen, M., & Hulsey, T. C. (2006). The role of personality and other factors in a mother’s decision to initiate breastfeeding. Journal of Human Lactation, 22, 16–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Waldfogel, J. (2001). International policies toward parental leave and child care. Future of Children, 11(1), 99–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wolf, J. B. (2010). Is breast best? Taking on the breastfeeding experts and the new high stakes of motherhood. New York: New York University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Wolf, J. H. (2001). Don’t kill your baby: Public health and the decline of breastfeeding in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Columbus: Ohio State University Press.

  • Wright, A. L., & Schanler, R. J. (2001). The resurgence of breastfeeding at the end of the second millennium. Journal of Nutrition, 131, 421S–425S.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank Doug McKee, Doug Miller, Berkay Ozcan, Kim Weeden, Kelly Musick, Peter Rich, and Rene Almeling for their suggestions and comments. We are especially indebted to Isadora Milanez for her extensive input and superb research assistance on this project.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Cornell University, 323 Uris Hall, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA

    Vida Maralani

  2. Department of Sociology, Hunter College, New York, NY, 10065, USA

    Samuel Stabler

Authors
  1. Vida Maralani
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Samuel Stabler
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Vida Maralani.

Electronic Supplementary Material

ESM 1

(DOCX 44 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Maralani, V., Stabler, S. Intensive Parenting: Fertility and Breastfeeding Duration in the United States. Demography 55, 1681–1704 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13524-018-0710-7

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13524-018-0710-7

Keywords

  • Breastfeeding
  • Fertility
  • Child investment