The MILQ Study

Mother-infant lactation questionnaire
The MILQ Study
Project Status: In progress
Project administered by: SAHMRI

The Mother-Infant Lactation Questionnaire (MILQ) will document the current feeding practices of South Australian mothers with full-term infants.

MILQ is a cohort study with regular short surveys across the first 12 months of life to document and understand:

    • Prevalence of breastfeeding
    • Duration of breastfeeding
    • Maternal and infant characteristics associated with initiation and continuation of breastfeeding
    • Breastfeeding support and resources received by mothers
    • Breastfeeding preferences and intentions of mothers
    • Rationale for breastfeeding preferences and intentions of mothers
    • Type of first feed
    • Barriers and enablers for breastfeeding continuation
    • Reasons for ceasing breastfeeding
    • Timing of introduction of first complementary foods
    • Types of foods introduced as first complementary foods
    • Variety of complimentary foods

    Why do we want to know about feeding infants?

    The aim of the MILQ study is to follow mother-infant pairs over the first 12 months of life to understand how families are feeding their full-term infants, and what challenges they experience.

    We hope to use this information to inform the support services at South Australian hospitals and postnatal care providers. The information collected will also help us understand the current practices for the introduction of complementary feeding.

    What is involved in the study?

    Participation involves completing short online surveys. The frequency and number of surveys you will receive will depend on your baby’s age at enrolment and their feeding practices.

    Find out more about the MILQ Study

    View the study brochure

    Download

    This work is supported by a Centres of Research Excellence grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council in Australia, and a research grant from Fonterra Co-Operative Group Limited, Palmerston North, New Zealand