We examined how prenatal exposure to breastfeeding information from various media sources, maternal knowledge of benefits, family and clinician support, and peer practices influence breastfeeding outcomes in early infancy. Initiation of breastfeeding, any breastfeeding at two months, and exclusivity of breastfeeding at two months were examined in a cohort of US women using data from the Infant Feeding Practices Study II. Descriptive statistics, chi-square analyses and logistic regression were conducted. Approximately 85 percent of the women initiated breastfeeding. At two months, 63.8 percent continued breastfeeding, while only 38.1 percent breastfed exclusively. Mothers with greater knowledge about breastfeeding benefits were 11.2 (95% CI: 6.87–18.45) times more likely to initiate breastfeeding and 5.62 (95% CI: 4.19–7.54) times more likely to breastfeed at two months than those with lower levels of knowledge. Women whose families prenatally supported exclusive breastfeeding were 8.21(5.12–13.2) times more likely to initiate and continue breastfeeding (OR 3.21, 95% CI: 2.51–4.11). Clinicians who supported breastfeeding only also increased the odds of a woman initiating breastfeeding (OR 1.95, 95% CI: 1.31–2.88). Interventions to increase maternal knowledge of breastfeeding benefits and family and clinician support of breastfeeding in the prenatal period may help increase breastfeeding rates. The encouragement of breastfeeding needs to be a priority among health care providers to improve the health of mothers and infants.

The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine has been available in the United States for over a decade. We sought to examine the associations between self-reported receipt of HPV vaccination among women and their 11–14-year-old children in 27 low-coverage states. Among the 3,261 mothers we surveyed, 18% reported receiving ≥1 dose of HPV vaccine. A significantly higher proportion of vaccinated women reported vaccination of their children compared to unvaccinated women (83% vs. 56%, p < .001). In multivariable logistic regression, vaccinated women (vs. unvaccinated) had 3.58 (95% CI: 2.81–4.56) times the adjusted-odds of vaccinating their children (≥1 dose HPV vaccine). Among unvaccinated children, vaccinated mothers (vs. unvaccinated) had 3.32 (95% CI: 2.09–5.26) times the adjusted odds of high intention to vaccinate their children in the next 12 months. We did not observe associations between mothers’ vaccination confidence and their vaccination status. We conclude that mothers who received ≥1 dose of HPV vaccine may be more likely to initiate or highly intend to initiate the HPV vaccine series for their children. This may have important implications for meeting population goals for HPV vaccination coverage as an increasing proportion of mothers are likely to be vaccinated over time.