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The role of residential distance in maternal breast milk intake in preterm and very low birthweight infants

Journal of Perinatology (2026)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objective

Study the association of residential distance in the context of other socioeconomic factors with the availability of maternal breast milk (MBM) to reduce barriers and improve outcomes for very low birthweight preterm infants.

Study design

This prospective cohort study analyzed demographic, socioeconomic, and clinical data from 300 maternal-preterm infant dyads with infants born <1500 g. Data included residential distance from the hospital, comorbidities, and infant MBM intake measured as a percentage of total enteral intake.

Results

Bivariate analysis revealed that maternal race, median income by zip code, marital status, and residential distance were significantly associated with MBM intake. In a multivariate regression model, only residential distance and marital status remained significant predictors, with greater distance from the hospital and marriage status associated with higher MBM intake.

Conclusion

Residential distance from the studied hospital was not a significant barrier to breastfeeding. Hospitals need to examine their own barriers to breastfeeding.

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Fig. 1: Infant Mom breast milk intake and maternal race.
Fig. 2: Infant Mom breast milk intake and maternal marital status.
Fig. 3: Infant Mom breast milk intake and residential distance from the hospital.
Fig. 4: Heat map showing the associated distributions of residential distance and median income.

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Data availability

De-identified data will be available upon request.

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Acknowledgements

We thank our research nurse, Marcia Kneusel, for assisting with enrollment and data collection.

Funding

NIH NHLBI K23HL150300 (Ho) and NIH NICHD R21HD112776 (Ho).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA

    Amornrat Sawangkum, Alexandra Hoeman, Willow D. Goff & Thao TB Ho

  2. Memorial Healthcare System, Office of Human Research, Hollywood, FL, USA

    Xiaoqi Sun

Authors
  1. Amornrat Sawangkum
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  2. Alexandra Hoeman
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  3. Willow D. Goff
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  4. Xiaoqi Sun
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  5. Thao TB Ho
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Contributions

AS designed the study, collected all clinical data and completed the first draft of manuscript. AH conducted literature review, prepared and edited the final manuscript. WG prepared and edited the final manuscript. XS performed biostatistical analyses. TTBH designed the study, supervised data collection, prepared and edited the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Thao TB Ho.

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Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethics approval

This study involved human participants and was reviewed by the University of South Florida Institutional Review Board, Pro00007168. Informed consent was obtained from all the participants prior to any study procedures. The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

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Sawangkum, A., Hoeman, A., Goff, W.D. et al. The role of residential distance in maternal breast milk intake in preterm and very low birthweight infants. J Perinatol (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-026-02577-1

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