Using Facebook to recruit to a national online survey investigating complementary medicine product use in pregnancy and lactation: A case study of method

Use of Galactagogues to Increase Milk Production Among Breastfeeding Mothers in the United States: A Descriptive Study

BACKGROUND

Perceived insufficient milk is a primary reason for early breastfeeding cessation. Some breastfeeding mothers may use galactagogues (ie, foods, beverages, herbal supplements, and pharmaceuticals) to try to increase milk supply. However, milk production requires frequent and effective milk removal, and there is limited evidence on the safety and efficacy of galactagogues. Additional research on the use of galactagogues is needed to inform breastfeeding support.

OBJECTIVE

Describe the prevalence of use and perceived effects of galactagogues and compare galactagogue use by maternal characteristics.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional online survey.

PARTICIPANTS/SETTING

A convenience sample of 1,294 adult women breastfeeding a singleton child and living in the United States were recruited using paid Facebook advertisements between December 2020 and February 2021.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Self-reported current or previous use of galactagogues and their perceived effects on milk production.

STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED

Frequencies and percentages described the use and perceived effects of galactagogues. The χ2 test of independence and independent t tests compared galactagogue use by select maternal characteristics.

RESULTS

More than half of participants (57.5%) reported using any galactagogues, 55.4% reported consuming foods or beverages, and 27.7% reported using herbal supplements. Few participants (1.4%) reported using pharmaceuticals. Participants reported varying effects of specific galactagogues on milk production. Reported galactagogue use was higher among participants who reported first-time breastfeeding (yes: 66.7% vs no: 49.3%; P < 0.001), breastfeeding pumped milk (yes: 63.1% vs no: 50.4%; P < 0.001), formula supplementation (yes: 66.8% vs no: 50.4%; P < 0.001), and perceived insufficient milk (yes: 78.8% vs no: 53.8%; P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Breastfeeding mothers in the United States commonly reported using galactagogues to increase milk production, highlighting the need for research on the safety and efficacy of galactagogues and enhanced breastfeeding support.

Cross-sectional survey of a convenience sample of Australians who use alcohol home delivery services

INTRODUCTION

Online alcohol purchasing and home delivery has increased in recent years, accelerated by the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. This article aims to investigate the purchasing and drinking behaviour of Australians who use online alcohol delivery services.

METHOD

A cross-sectional self-report survey with a convenience sample of 1158 Australians ≥18 years (49.3% female) who used an online alcohol delivery service in the past 3 months, recruited through paid social media advertisements from September to November 2021. Quota sampling was used to obtain a sample with age and gender strata proportional to the Australian adult population. Descriptive statistics were generated and logistic regression used to explore variables that predict hazardous/harmful drinking (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test score ≥8).

RESULTS

One-in-five (20.1%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 17.8-22.5) participants had used an alcohol delivery service to extend a home drinking session because they had run out of alcohol and wanted to continue drinking and, of these, one-third (33.9%, 95% CI 27.9-40.4) indicated that if the service was not available they would have stopped drinking. Using delivery services in this way was associated with six times higher odds of drinking at hazardous/harmful levels (odds ratio 6.26, 95% CI 3.78-10.36). Participants ≤25 years were significantly more likely to report never having their identification verified when receiving their alcohol delivery at the door compared with purchasing takeaway alcohol in-person at a bottle shop (p < 0.001, McNemar).

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

Given the risks associated with alcohol delivery, regulation of these services should be improved to meet the same standards as bricks-and-mortar bottle shops.

Consumer Awareness and Acceptance of Biotechnological Solutions for Gluten-Free Products

Celiac disease is an immune-mediated disorder caused by the ingestion of gluten proteins. The gluten-free diet is currently the only therapy to achieve the symptoms' remission. Biotechnological approaches are currently being explored to obtain safer and healthier food for celiacs. This article analyzes consumer awareness and acceptance of advanced biotechnologies to develop gluten-free products. An online snowball sampling questionnaire was proposed to 511 Italian participants, selected among celiac and non-celiac people, from December 2020 to January 2021, during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, 64% of respondents favor food biotechnology, as long as it has benefits for health or the environment. Moreover, biotechnology perception differs according to education level and type. A total of 65% of the survey participants would taste gluten-free products obtained through a biotechnological approach, and 57% would buy them at a higher price than the current market price. Our results show a change in public opinion about the usefulness of food biotechnology and its moral acceptability compared to 20 years ago. However, the study of public opinion is very complex, dealing with individuals with social, economic, and cultural differences. Undoubtedly, the scientific dissemination of genetic biotechnologies must be more effective and usable to increase the level of citizens' awareness.

What are the ways in which social media is used in the context of complementary and alternative medicine in the health and medical scholarly literature? a scoping review

BACKGROUND

Despite the increased use of social media to share health-related information and the substantial impact that complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) can have on individuals' health and wellbeing, currently, to our knowledge, there is no review that compiles research on how social media is used in the context of CAM. The objective of this study was to summarize what are the ways in which social media is used in the context of CAM.

METHODS

A scoping review was conducted, following Arksey and O'Malley's five-stage methodological framework. MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, AMED, and CINAHL databases were systematically searched from inception until October 3, 2020, in addition to the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technology in Health (CADTH) website. Eligible studies had to have investigated how at least one social media platform is used in the context of a single or multiple types of CAM treatments.

RESULTS

Searches retrieved 1714 items following deduplication, of which 1687 titles and abstracts were eliminated, leaving 94 full-text articles to be considered. Of those, 65 were not eligible, leaving a total of 29 articles eligible for review. Three themes emerged from our analysis: 1) social media is used to share user/practitioner beliefs, attitudes, and experiences about CAM, 2) social media acts as a vehicle for the spread of misinformation about CAM, and 3) there are unique challenges with social media research in the context of CAM.

CONCLUSIONS

In addition to social media being a useful tool to share user/practitioner beliefs, attitudes, and experiences about CAM, it has shown to be accessible, effective, and a viable option in delivering CAM therapies and information. Social media has also been shown to spread a large amount of misleading and false information in the context of CAM. Additionally, this review highlights the challenges with conducting social media research in the context of CAM, particularly in collecting a representative sample.

Collaborative development of an innovative virtual research recruitment strategy through an academic/clinical partnership

PURPOSE

Recruitment for research studies is the crucial first step and often the most challenging one. A major shift in recruitment methods for research was necessitated by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our goal is to describe lessons learned and the success rate of virtual research recruitment compared with other research recruitment strategies employed by our Academic/Clinical Partnership research team.

METHODS

A descriptive design was employed to assess the success of in-person, mailed introductory letters with follow-up telephone calls and virtual recruitment strategies. The potential participants (N = 144) were parents caring for technology-dependent children (e.g., mechanical ventilation, feeding tubes) at home. To meet recruitment goals the Academic/Clinical Partnership research team (academic project team, hospital-based research nurses) collaboratively developed creative recruitment strategies and a framework to assess recruitment strategy success; percentage who agreed to be contacted by the academic partner, total time for recruitment visit, efficiency, and adherence to ethical recruitment principles.

RESULTS

Virtual recruitment via telehealth visits was highly successful meeting all recruitment strategy benchmarks. Importantly, 91.7 % of potential participants that were approached agreed to be contacted for enrollment in a time efficient manner while adhering to ethical recruitment principles. Best practices and lessons learned were identified.

CONCLUSIONS

The transition to virtual study recruitment due to the pandemic was an innovative and successful strategy. An Academic/Clinical Partnership research team benefits both partners: (1) enhances study recruitment by increasing research capacity at the clinical site; and (2) provides mentoring by nurse scientists to facilitate nurse research scholar knowledge and skills.

Women's reasons for taking complementary medicine products in pregnancy and lactation: Results from a national Australian survey

BACKGROUND

and purpose: Pregnant and breastfeeding women commonly use complementary medicine products (CMPs), including dietary supplements and herbal medicines. This study investigated women's reasons for use.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A national, cross-sectional, online survey conducted between July-September 2019 investigated reasons for CMP use during pregnancy and lactation. Australian women who were currently pregnant and/or breastfeeding participated. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, Chi-square and principal component analyses.

RESULTS

Of the 810 women surveyed (n = 354 pregnant; n = 456 breastfeeding), most reported prior CMP use and felt that CMPs had been beneficial to maintaining and optimising their own and their children's health. However, when ill, they preferred medicines prescribed by doctors or pharmacists. Perceived benefits to their unborn or breastfeeding babies' health and their own health (both cohorts), the health of their pregnancy (pregnant participants), and benefits to the breastfeeding process and breastmilk supply (breastfeeding participants) were important reasons for women's CMP use.

CONCLUSION

Women's reasons for CMP use centred on perceived benefits to their own health and the health of their babies. Women's prior positive experiences with CMP use, combined with preferences for pharmaceutical use when ill, indicates their use of CMPs can be considered complementary, rather than alternative, to biomedical health care.

Demographics, health literacy and health locus of control beliefs of Australian women who take complementary medicine products during pregnancy and breastfeeding: A cross-sectional, online, national survey

Background

Pregnant and breastfeeding women's use of complementary medicine products (CMPs) is common, and possibly associated with autonomous health care behaviours. However, the health literacy levels and health locus of control (HLOC) beliefs of women who use CMPs in pregnancy and lactation have not been previously assessed in a large Australian sample.

Aim

The aim of this study is to determine the health literacy levels and HLOC beliefs of women who use CMPs in pregnancy and lactation and determine the types of CMPs used.

Methods

A cross‐sectional, national, online survey of Australian pregnant or breastfeeding women aged 18 years and older, and currently using CMPs was conducted.

Results

A total of 810 completed surveys (354 pregnant and 456 breastfeeding women) were analysed. Most had adequate functional health literacy levels (93.3%). Health care practitioners (HCPs) HLOC mean scores were the highest for the sample, followed by Internal HLOC beliefs mean scores. Almost all (n = 809) took at least one dietary supplement, the most popular being pregnancy and breastfeeding multivitamins, iron supplements and probiotics. Use was generally in line with clinical recommendations, except for low rates of iodine supplementation. Herbal medicine use was lower for the total sample (57.3%, n = 464), but significantly higher (p < .0001) for the breastfeeding cohort, with consumers taking one to four herbal medicines each. The most popular herbs were raspberry leaf, ginger, peppermint and chamomile (pregnant respondents) and chamomile, ginger and fenugreek (breastfeeding respondents).

Conclusions

Respondents were health literate, with high scores for Internal and HCP HLOC scales, suggesting that they are likely to demonstrate self‐efficacy, positive health behaviours and work well in partnership with HCPs. HCPs can facilitate discussions with pregnant and breastfeeding women using CMPs, while considering women's health literacy levels, health beliefs and goals.

Transitioning to practice: a qualitative investigation of Australian graduate naturopath's experiences of being in practice

BACKGROUND

The transition from student to practitioner can be challenging, resulting in stress, burnout and attrition. While there has been ample research examining graduate medical and allied health practitioner experiences of transitioning to practice, there is a paucity of research exploring such experiences in newly qualified naturopathic medicine practitioners. In light of this knowledge gap, the objective of this study was to ascertain the experiences of practicing as a naturopath in Australia within the first 5 years post-graduation.

METHODS

Using a qualitative descriptive approach, recent graduates of an Australian Bachelor of Naturopathy (or equivalent) program were invited to participate in a semi-structured telephone interview to address the study objective. Data were analysed utilising a framework approach.

RESULTS

A total of 19 new graduates (94.7% female; 57.9% aged 40-59 years) undertook an interview. Five inter-related themes emerged from the data: practitioner, practice, proprietorship, professions, and perceptions. Connected with these themes were contrasting feelings, multiplicity of duties, small business challenges, professional collaboration, and professional identity, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Participants were generally content with their decision to become a naturopath. However, most were confronted by a range of challenges as they transitioned from graduate to practitioner, for which many felt ill-prepared. In light of the complexity of the issue, and the potential impact on the sustainability of the profession, it is evident that a multi-pronged, multi-stakeholder approach would be needed to better support graduate naturopath transition to practice.