Breastfeeding duration comparison of children enrolled in municipal preschools in 2004 and 2018

Objective To describe and compare the duration of breastfeeding of children enrolled in municipal preschools in Pelotas (RS), Brazil, in 2004 and 2018, taking into account sociodemographic and health factors. Methods Cross-sectional study, with children aged zero to six years. Data collection included interview with parents and children anthropometric assessment. Data was entered on EpiData 3.1 and analyzed on Stata 14.0. Median duration of breastfeeding was assessed according to the independent variables. Two children life tables were elaborated for the years 2004 and 2018. The statistical significance of the median analysis was based on the Wilcoxon Rank Sum test for dichotomic exposure and Kruskal Wallis test for polytomous exposure. Results A total of 1902 children were studied. In 2004, the median duration of breastfeeding was five months (IQR: 2.0;12.0) which increased one month for each weight category increase at birth. In 2018, the median was six months (IQR: 2.0;17.0) and increased two months for each weight category increase at birth. The life table showed that around 20.0% of the children in 2004 and 33% of the children in 2018 continued to be breastfed after 11 months of age. Conclusion The breastfeeding median increased in the period under review. The greater the birth weight, the longer the breastfeeding median duration.