Breastfeeding Related Posts on Instagram: A Content Analysis

Abstract

Aim: This study aimed to analyze the content of Instagram posts on breastfeeding. Method: The data from this descriptive and cross-sectional study were collected by one researcher three times. At each data collection time, the most recent 50 posts were coded using the following hashtags #breastfeeding, #breastmilk, #breastfeeding, #breastmilk, #breastfeeding, and #breastmilk. Results: Of these posts, 62.7% were Turkish and 94.7% had visuals. The average number of likes for the posts was 815.70±1883.095 (Min:1-Max:10,531) and the average number of comments was 34.08±64.106 (Min:0-Max:391). Posts with higher likes were more likely to mention the benefits of breastfeeding to mothers (p= 0.030). Posts with a higher number of comments were more likely to mention the following: breastfeeding every time the infant was hungry (p=0.004), breastfeeding until the signs of satiety were observed (p=0.007), and the effect of breastfeeding on the infant's growth (p=0.013). Conclusion: Sharing of posts by health professionals was determined to be the reason for the increased likelihood of getting likes. Therefore, the use of new technologies by health professionals is crucial for achieving better results in health education.