Breastfeeding Protection, Promotion, and Support in Humanitarian Emergencies: A Systematic Review of Literature

BACKGROUND: guidelines illustrate a series of interventions to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding, but unfortunately, these recommendations are still scarcely applied. RESEARCH AIMS: (1) To review the literature describing the effectiveness of breastfeeding protection, promotion, and support interventions in humanitarian emergency contexts; (2) to describe the influence of interventions on breastfeeding initiation, exclusivity, and duration; and (3) to evaluate relevant mother and infant/child outcomes available in the literature. METHODS: = 1,391). RESULTS: Improved breastfeeding outcomes were reported in four (40%) papers, and three (30%) highlighted a behavioral change in infant and young child feeding practices following the implementation of the interventions. Increased knowledge about appropriate infant and young child feeding practices among mothers and humanitarian/health staff was reported in eight (80%) papers. However, outcomes were sometimes only generically reported, and some of the included papers had a low strength of evidence. CONCLUSION: In the literature, there is a great dearth of studies evaluating the influence of interventions aimed at improving breastfeeding in emergency settings. More evidence is urgently needed to encourage and implement optimal breastfeeding practices.