# Breastfeeding support and counselling Intervention · id `maternal:breastfeeding-support` · Maternal & Newborn Atlas · release `fc5a600ec7387e71` (public) > General information from published sources, not medical advice, and not reviewed by clinicians. Check the cited source before relying on anything here. The atlas's own text and curation may be reused under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/): credit the atlas, and do not use it commercially. See the atlas About page. Text quoted from a source stays under that source's own terms, given as the source's reuse\_basis. The atlas's reuse terms do not cover it. The downloads list each quotation with its source in third\_party\_quotations. Browse, life stage: Pregnancy; Postpartum Browse, care area: Breastfeeding and lactation ## In plain language Help with breastfeeding from health workers, peers or programmes, offered before and after the birth. In 2025 the US Preventive Services Task Force recommended providing interventions or referrals during pregnancy and after birth to support breastfeeding. WHO recommends that mothers get practical support to start breastfeeding and to manage common difficulties. ## Technical summary USPSTF 2025 (B recommendation) on primary care behavioral counselling to support breastfeeding, with moderate certainty of moderate net benefit (see the claim on this page); an earlier 2016 USPSTF statement with the same grade exists. WHO 2017 Recommendation 3 (recommended, moderate-quality evidence) on practical support to initiate and establish breastfeeding and manage common difficulties, in facilities providing maternity and newborn services. The PROBIT cluster trial in Belarus compared a package modelled on the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative with usual practice and found more breastfeeding at 12 months and more exclusive breastfeeding at 3 and 6 months, fewer gastrointestinal infections and less atopic eczema in the first year, and no significant reduction in respiratory infection (see the claims on this page; the infant results are in their own context). The guideline records are linked through the claims; this record links to the shared USPSTF record in core. The recipient is the pregnant or postpartum person and, in the evidence, the infant. ## Claims, with the population each applies to ## Context: Infants in the first 12 months of life, Belarus maternity hospitals (PROBIT, 2001) Recipient: Child; Population: The infants of the PROBIT mother-infant pairs, assessed for gastrointestinal tract infection, respiratory tract infection and atopic eczema during the first 12 months of life.; Care setting: 31 maternity hospitals and polyclinics (cluster-randomized sites).; Geography: Republic of Belarus; Life stage: Infants from birth to 12 months; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: First 12 months of life (abstract). ### In PROBIT, infants at the intervention sites had a significantly lower risk of one or more gastrointestinal tract infections (9.1% against 13.2%; adjusted odds ratio 0.60, 95% CI 0.40 to 0.91) and of atopic eczema (3.3% against 6.3%; adjusted odds ratio 0.54, 95% CI 0.31 to 0.95) in the first 12 months of life, with the intervention group first in each pair. There was no significant reduction in respiratory tract infection (39.2% in the intervention group, 39.4% in the control group; adjusted odds ratio 0.87, 95% CI 0.59 to 1.28). - Category: Effect - Evidence stage: Interventional - Certainty: Certainty not assessed - Applies to: Recipient: Child; Population: The infants of the PROBIT mother-infant pairs, assessed for gastrointestinal tract infection, respiratory tract infection and atopic eczema during the first 12 months of life.; Care setting: 31 maternity hospitals and polyclinics (cluster-randomized sites).; Geography: Republic of Belarus; Life stage: Infants from birth to 12 months; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: First 12 months of life (abstract). - Limitations: Only the PubMed abstract was read. The abstract does not say that the intervention group is named first in the infection and eczema comparisons, so that order is an inference from the breastfeeding sentence before it. The trial tested a package that promoted breastfeeding; the infant results show what happened under the package and do not separate breastfeeding from other differences between sites. The registry holds longer follow-up outcomes for the children and mothers (adiposity, asthma, cognition and others); no results for them were read. Infant outcomes belong to the infant context and are kept apart from the breastfeeding result. - Last checked: 2026-10-14 - Sources: 1. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES, sentence 1, fragment 1 of 3. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Outcomes measured. 2. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RESULTS, sentence 1, fragment 3 of 5. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Gastrointestinal tract infection result begins here. 3. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RESULTS, sentence 1, fragment 4 of 5. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Gastrointestinal infection and eczema results. 4. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RESULTS, sentence 1, fragment 5 of 5. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Respiratory tract infection result. ## Context: Healthy mothers who intended to breastfeed and their full-term infants, Belarus maternity hospitals (PROBIT, 2001) Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Mother-infant pairs: full-term singleton infants weighing at least 2500 g and their healthy mothers who intended to breastfeed. 17046 pairs were enrolled and 16491 (96.7%) completed the 12 months of follow-up. Sites, not individuals, were randomized.; Care setting: 31 maternity hospitals and polyclinics, randomized as clusters: 16 to the experimental intervention and 15 to continuing usual infant feeding practices.; Geography: Republic of Belarus; Life stage: Newborns at birth, followed for the first 12 months of life; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Cluster-randomized trial conducted June 1996 to December 1997 with 1-year follow-up. ### In PROBIT, a cluster-randomized trial in 31 maternity hospitals and polyclinics in Belarus, 16 sites received an intervention modelled on the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative and 15 continued usual infant feeding practices; 17046 mother-infant pairs took part and 16491 completed 12 months of follow-up. Infants at the intervention sites were more likely than control infants to be breastfed to any degree at 12 months (19.7% against 11.4%) and more likely to be exclusively breastfed at 3 months (43.3% against 6.4%, P<.001) and at 6 months (7.9% against 0.6%, P=.01). - Category: Effect - Evidence stage: Interventional - Certainty: Certainty not assessed - Applies to: Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Mother-infant pairs: full-term singleton infants weighing at least 2500 g and their healthy mothers who intended to breastfeed. 17046 pairs were enrolled and 16491 (96.7%) completed the 12 months of follow-up. Sites, not individuals, were randomized.; Care setting: 31 maternity hospitals and polyclinics, randomized as clusters: 16 to the experimental intervention and 15 to continuing usual infant feeding practices.; Geography: Republic of Belarus; Life stage: Newborns at birth, followed for the first 12 months of life; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Cluster-randomized trial conducted June 1996 to December 1997 with 1-year follow-up. - Limitations: Only the PubMed abstract was read. The abstract prints an adjusted odds ratio of 0.47 (95% CI 0.32 to 0.69) next to the 12-month figures without saying what it compares, so this record does not interpret it. The registry lists no masking (masking NONE), and breastfeeding was reported by the study population, which can make the measure less exact. The intervention was modelled on the WHO and UNICEF initiative; the trial does not show how much any one part of it contributed. The trial ran from June 1996 to December 1997 in one country with a different health system from many others, so results may not carry over. - Last checked: 2026-10-14 - Sources: 1. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, DESIGN, sentence 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Design and dates. 2. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, SETTING, sentence 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Setting. 3. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, PARTICIPANTS, sentence 1, fragment 1 of 2. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Participants, part 1. 4. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, PARTICIPANTS, sentence 1, fragment 2 of 2. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Participants completing follow-up. 5. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, INTERVENTIONS, sentence 1, fragment 1 of 4. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Cluster allocation, part 1. 6. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, INTERVENTIONS, sentence 1, fragment 2 of 4. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: The intervention was modelled on the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. 7. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, INTERVENTIONS, sentence 1, fragment 3 of 4. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Cluster allocation, control sites, part 1. 8. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, INTERVENTIONS, sentence 1, fragment 4 of 4. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Control practice. 9. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RESULTS, sentence 1, fragment 1 of 5. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Breastfeeding at 12 months. 10. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RESULTS, sentence 1, fragment 2 of 5. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Exclusive breastfeeding at 3 months, and the 12-month odds ratio. 11. Supports: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (PROBIT): a randomized trial in the Republic of Belarus (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RESULTS, sentence 1, fragment 3 of 5. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 8dcbf9669d14648122628ab01147c489157378a3a94dcb01d7a0197aaf7d0137. How it applies: Exclusive breastfeeding at 6 months. 12. Background: Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial (Registry, edition ClinicalTrials.gov API v2 record, last update posted 2023-09-22.) Locator: protocolSection.designModule.designInfo.maskingInfo.masking. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:26Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: f8b8e567dd72dfca75c00c42cb90b05235a81cc23bf5a298952d2f1f32039760. How it applies: Registry masking value. ## Context: Pregnant or postpartum adolescents and adults and their infants and children (USPSTF, 2025) Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Adolescents and adults who are pregnant or postpartum, and their infants and children. The counselling and referral is given to the pregnant or postpartum person in primary care; the benefits the USPSTF weighed include benefits to infants and children.; Care setting: Primary care (named in the statement title).; Geography: United States (USPSTF recommendation statement); Life stage: Pregnancy and after birth; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Not applicable (recommendation context) ### In 2025 the US Preventive Services Task Force recommended providing interventions or referrals, during pregnancy and after birth, to support breastfeeding (B recommendation). It concluded with moderate certainty that primary care behavioral counselling interventions to support breastfeeding have a moderate net benefit. The statement covers adolescents and adults who are pregnant or postpartum, and their infants and children. - Category: Recommendation - Evidence stage: Guidance - Certainty: Certainty not assessed - Applies to: Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Adolescents and adults who are pregnant or postpartum, and their infants and children. The counselling and referral is given to the pregnant or postpartum person in primary care; the benefits the USPSTF weighed include benefits to infants and children.; Care setting: Primary care (named in the statement title).; Geography: United States (USPSTF recommendation statement); Life stage: Pregnancy and after birth; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Not applicable (recommendation context) - Limitations: Only the PubMed abstract of the JAMA statement was read. The USPSTF grade and its certainty wording are the Task Force's own and are not a GRADE rating, so the certainty field is left not assessed. An earlier USPSTF statement on primary care interventions to support breastfeeding (JAMA 2016, PMID 27784102) also carries a B recommendation; the 2025 abstract read does not say that it replaces the 2016 statement, so no supersession link is recorded. The abstract does not describe which counselling methods were tested. The recommendation is not advice for any individual. - Last checked: 2026-10-14 - Sources: 1. Supports: Primary Care Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RECOMMENDATION, sentence 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: b747e5c9660cb8087b81f5fb37b49980381af26ef3df4fb1d08001ba8f11b00a. How it applies: The recommendation. 2. Supports: Primary Care Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, RECOMMENDATION, sentence 2. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: b747e5c9660cb8087b81f5fb37b49980381af26ef3df4fb1d08001ba8f11b00a. How it applies: The grade. 3. Supports: Primary Care Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, EVIDENCE ASSESSMENT, sentence 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: b747e5c9660cb8087b81f5fb37b49980381af26ef3df4fb1d08001ba8f11b00a. How it applies: Certainty and net benefit. 4. Supports: Primary Care Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, POPULATION, sentence 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: b747e5c9660cb8087b81f5fb37b49980381af26ef3df4fb1d08001ba8f11b00a. How it applies: The population. 5. Background: Primary Care Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATION, sentence 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: a1c916d34cc260434733e59cedc29866acdd09c599414a45c48cba61821a076c. How it applies: The 2016 USPSTF recommendation. 6. Background: Primary Care Interventions to Support Breastfeeding: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement (Publication, edition PubMed record (abstract and bibliographic data) from NCBI E-utilities. The full text and the version of record were not fetched.) Locator: Abstract, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATION, sentence 2. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:18:22Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: a1c916d34cc260434733e59cedc29866acdd09c599414a45c48cba61821a076c. How it applies: The 2016 grade. ## Context: Mothers and infants in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (WHO, 2017) Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Women delivering in hospitals, maternity facilities or other facilities providing maternity and newborn services, and their infants. WHO says this includes mother-infant pairs with term infants, as well as those with preterm, low-birth-weight or sick infants and those admitted to neonatal intensive care units.; Care setting: Facilities providing maternity and newborn services.; Geography: Global (WHO guideline for use in national and facility programmes); Life stage: Childbirth and the early postpartum and newborn period, during the stay at the facility; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Not applicable (recommendation context) ### In its 2017 guideline on protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services, WHO recommends that mothers receive practical support to enable them to start and establish breastfeeding and to manage common breastfeeding difficulties (Recommendation 3). WHO labels it recommended, based on moderate-quality evidence. The guideline updates and supersedes the 1989 Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding. - Category: Recommendation - Evidence stage: Guidance - Certainty: Moderate certainty (method: WHO 2017 guideline: the quality of evidence printed with Recommendation 3, graded by the WHO guideline group using the GRADE approach) - Applies to: Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Women delivering in hospitals, maternity facilities or other facilities providing maternity and newborn services, and their infants. WHO says this includes mother-infant pairs with term infants, as well as those with preterm, low-birth-weight or sick infants and those admitted to neonatal intensive care units.; Care setting: Facilities providing maternity and newborn services.; Geography: Global (WHO guideline for use in national and facility programmes); Life stage: Childbirth and the early postpartum and newborn period, during the stay at the facility; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Not applicable (recommendation context) - Limitations: WHO uses three types of recommendation (recommended, context-specific recommendation, not recommended) and grades the quality of evidence for each recommendation as high, moderate, low or very low. The moderate-quality rating is the guideline's own and applies to this recommendation, so it is recorded as the certainty with that method. Only the recommendation list and the methods paragraphs were read, not the evidence tables. The guideline is for facility programmes and national policy, not advice for any individual. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked. - Last checked: 2026-10-14 - Sources: 1. Supports: Guideline: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (Guideline, edition 2017. ISBN 978-92-4-155008-6. The who.int page shows 2 November 2017, which the atlas uses for WHO sources and decisions. The WHO IRIS item record (handle 10665/259386, fetched through the IRIS API as mj-iris-item-10665-259386.json) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day. The PDF was fetched from IRIS (bitstream 601a8af5-0919-4ffb-a11d-fb534d96ed03) and has 120 pages. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked.) Locator: Recommendations (page ix), Recommendation 3. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:21:52Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 192ac5cc6b548f67f6298485909cf4c680f4567f0df62525b3db5f7c47f266c5. How it applies: Recommendation 3 and its quality rating. 2. Supports: Guideline: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (Guideline, edition 2017. ISBN 978-92-4-155008-6. The who.int page shows 2 November 2017, which the atlas uses for WHO sources and decisions. The WHO IRIS item record (handle 10665/259386, fetched through the IRIS API as mj-iris-item-10665-259386.json) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day. The PDF was fetched from IRIS (bitstream 601a8af5-0919-4ffb-a11d-fb534d96ed03) and has 120 pages. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked.) Locator: Guideline development methodology, paragraph 2. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:21:52Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 192ac5cc6b548f67f6298485909cf4c680f4567f0df62525b3db5f7c47f266c5. How it applies: WHO recommendation types, part 1. 3. Supports: Guideline: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (Guideline, edition 2017. ISBN 978-92-4-155008-6. The who.int page shows 2 November 2017, which the atlas uses for WHO sources and decisions. The WHO IRIS item record (handle 10665/259386, fetched through the IRIS API as mj-iris-item-10665-259386.json) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day. The PDF was fetched from IRIS (bitstream 601a8af5-0919-4ffb-a11d-fb534d96ed03) and has 120 pages. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked.) Locator: Guideline development methodology, paragraph 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:21:52Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 192ac5cc6b548f67f6298485909cf4c680f4567f0df62525b3db5f7c47f266c5. How it applies: The GRADE method was followed. 4. Background: Guideline: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (Guideline, edition 2017. ISBN 978-92-4-155008-6. The who.int page shows 2 November 2017, which the atlas uses for WHO sources and decisions. The WHO IRIS item record (handle 10665/259386, fetched through the IRIS API as mj-iris-item-10665-259386.json) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day. The PDF was fetched from IRIS (bitstream 601a8af5-0919-4ffb-a11d-fb534d96ed03) and has 120 pages. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked.) Locator: Purpose of the guideline, paragraph 1. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:21:52Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 192ac5cc6b548f67f6298485909cf4c680f4567f0df62525b3db5f7c47f266c5. How it applies: Purpose of the guideline. 5. Background: Guideline: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (Guideline, edition 2017. ISBN 978-92-4-155008-6. The who.int page shows 2 November 2017, which the atlas uses for WHO sources and decisions. The WHO IRIS item record (handle 10665/259386, fetched through the IRIS API as mj-iris-item-10665-259386.json) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day. The PDF was fetched from IRIS (bitstream 601a8af5-0919-4ffb-a11d-fb534d96ed03) and has 120 pages. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked.) Locator: Recommendations, closing paragraph. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:21:52Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 192ac5cc6b548f67f6298485909cf4c680f4567f0df62525b3db5f7c47f266c5. How it applies: The guideline supersedes the 1989 Ten Steps. 6. Background: Guideline: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (Guideline, edition 2017. ISBN 978-92-4-155008-6. The who.int page shows 2 November 2017, which the atlas uses for WHO sources and decisions. The WHO IRIS item record (handle 10665/259386, fetched through the IRIS API as mj-iris-item-10665-259386.json) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day. The PDF was fetched from IRIS (bitstream 601a8af5-0919-4ffb-a11d-fb534d96ed03) and has 120 pages. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked.) Locator: Recommendations (page x), Recommendation 14. Retrieved 2026-10-14T18:21:52Z. Source state: Current. Snapshot hash: 192ac5cc6b548f67f6298485909cf4c680f4567f0df62525b3db5f7c47f266c5. How it applies: Recommendation 14 of the same guideline: antenatal counselling about breastfeeding. ## Guidance, authorization and access ### Recommendation `maternal:rec-uspstf-2025-breastfeeding-counselling` - Intervention: Breastfeeding support and counselling (`maternal:breastfeeding-support`) - Direction: Recommended - Issued by: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (`core:uspstf`) - Guideline record: USPSTF 2025: behavioral counseling interventions to support breastfeeding (`maternal:guideline-uspstf-2025-breastfeeding`) - Guideline: Breastfeeding: Primary Care Behavioral Counseling Interventions (USPSTF final recommendation statement page), edition Final recommendation statement page as fetched on 2026-10-14 (mx-uspstf-breastfeeding-primary-care-interventions.html). The date under the title is April 11, 2025.; snapshot `maternal:uspstf-breastfeeding-2025-2026-10-14` - Jurisdictions: United States; note: United States (the issuer is a United States task force). - Strength: B recommendation (USPSTF letter grades: A, B, C and D recommendations, and the I statement for when the evidence is insufficient to recommend for or against. The grade reflects the Task Force's certainty about net benefit. These are not GRADE strength labels.) - Effective: 2025-04-11 (The date under the title of the USPSTF final recommendation statement page, April 11, 2025. The statement was also published in JAMA, which has its own issue date.) - Supersession: Not checked - Applies to: Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Adolescents and adults who are pregnant or postpartum, and their infants and children. The counselling and referral is given to the pregnant or postpartum person in primary care; the benefits the USPSTF weighed include benefits to infants and children.; Care setting: Primary care (named in the statement title).; Geography: United States (USPSTF recommendation statement); Life stage: Pregnancy and after birth; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Not applicable (recommendation context) - Basis: claim `maternal:claim-uspstf-2025-breastfeeding-counselling` ### Recommendation `maternal:rec-who-2017-breastfeeding-support-3` - Intervention: Breastfeeding support and counselling (`maternal:breastfeeding-support`) - Direction: Recommended - Issued by: World Health Organization (`maternal:who`) - Guideline record: WHO 2017: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services (`maternal:guideline-who-2017-breastfeeding-in-facilities`) - Guideline: Guideline: protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in facilities providing maternity and newborn services, edition 2017. ISBN 978-92-4-155008-6. The who.int page shows 2 November 2017, which the atlas uses for WHO sources and decisions. The WHO IRIS item record (handle 10665/259386, fetched through the IRIS API as mj-iris-item-10665-259386.json) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day. The PDF was fetched from IRIS (bitstream 601a8af5-0919-4ffb-a11d-fb534d96ed03) and has 120 pages. Whether a later edition replaces it was not checked.; snapshot `maternal:who-2017-bf-facilities-guideline-pdf-2026-10-14` - Jurisdictions: Global; note: Global (WHO guideline for use in national and facility programmes). - Strength: Recommended (WHO 2017 guideline: each recommendation is recommended, a context-specific recommendation (recommended only in specific contexts) or not recommended, with the quality of evidence graded high, moderate, low or very low. Recommendation 3 is recommended, moderate-quality evidence.) - Effective: 2017-11-02 (The who.int page date, 2 November 2017 (2017-11-02), is the effective date under the atlas rule for WHO decisions. The WHO IRIS record (handle 10665/259386) lists an issue date of 2017-11-02, the same day.) - Applies to: Recipient: Mixed recipients; Population: Women delivering in hospitals, maternity facilities or other facilities providing maternity and newborn services, and their infants. WHO says this includes mother-infant pairs with term infants, as well as those with preterm, low-birth-weight or sick infants and those admitted to neonatal intensive care units.; Care setting: Facilities providing maternity and newborn services.; Geography: Global (WHO guideline for use in national and facility programmes); Life stage: Childbirth and the early postpartum and newborn period, during the stay at the facility; Gestational age: Not reported; Postnatal age: Not reported; Follow-up: Not applicable (recommendation context) - Basis: claim `maternal:claim-who-2017-breastfeeding-support-recommendation-3` ## Connected pages - USPSTF 2025: provide interventions or referrals to support breastfeeding (B): Breastfeeding (`maternal:breastfeeding`) [a claim, not a settled fact; see claim `maternal:claim-uspstf-2025-breastfeeding-counselling` and its context] - WHO 2017 Recommendation 3: practical support to start breastfeeding: Breastfeeding (`maternal:breastfeeding`) [a claim, not a settled fact; see claim `maternal:claim-who-2017-breastfeeding-support-recommendation-3` and its context] - PROBIT: breastfeeding at 12 months 19.7% against 11.4%; exclusive at 3 months 43.3% against 6.4%: Breastfeeding (`maternal:breastfeeding`) [a claim, not a settled fact; see claim `maternal:claim-probit-breastfeeding-duration-and-exclusivity` and its context] - The US Preventive Services Task Force: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (`core:uspstf`) - Filed under this front: Newborn support: warmth, breathing, feeding (`maternal:front-newborn-support`) - Investigated in: PROBIT trial (Promotion of Breastfeeding Intervention Trial) (`maternal:probit-trial`) ## Provenance Content hash: 8abeece59cc6b73c4561c9cbd2e9dd01c9e6ef010f16d5397862b5dc3f27cf66 Last substantive edit: 2026-10-14 Evidence last checked: 2026-10-14