Monica Luna

Price, CPH 205

News Media Analysis
February 16, 2011

Journal Article: “Lactation and Maternal Risk of Type 2 Diabetes”

The journal article I chose to use as a basis for my News Media Analysis is,
“Lactation and Maternal Risk of Type 2 Diabetes: A Population-based Study” which
was published in The American Journal of Medicine. The article outlined a study that
was designed to determine the affects of breastfeeding(lactation) and not
breastfeeding upon the mother’s body. The sampling group was large, about 2300
women, which included both women who had given birth and those who had not.
The women who had given birth were asked questions about their breastfeeding
history, and then their current health was measured using a series of questions and
their BMI(Body Mass Index) and this current health status was used as a tool to
measure their risk of disease, in this particular case Type 2 Diabetes. After analyzing
the results, it was determined that women who breastfed their newborn infants for
at least one month after birth, were at a largely decreased risk of acquiring Type 2
Diabetes later on in life. In analyzing the results as they were presented in the
journal and as they were presented in news media articles pertaining to the journal
article, I found that the audience of the news media article was crucial in how the
article was written, the vocabulary used, how the information was presented, and
what other resources were offered.

In writing any kind of article, the author must decide whom they are writing for,
who they really want to read their article. The author needs to next gauge what is
important to this audience and appeal to that side of the part of the person, whether
it is the caregiver within themselves, the shallow part of themselves, or their
academic knowledge. Within reading the title or first few sentences of each article, it
was easy to decipher for whom each article had been written for. For example, the
article titled, “Breast is best: New WHI data extend CV benefits of breast-feeding to
mom”, is obviously not written for the average newsreader. The terminology within
just the title is a clear indicator of who will be reading this article. The terms “WHI
data” and “CV benefits” are not terms that every person knows. As you read further
into this article, published on “TheHeart.org”, you find more and more scientifically
advanced terminology. The article cites the numerical values found in the original
study, such as “In fully adjusted models, those who reported a lifetime history of
more than 12 months of lactation were less likely to have hypertension (odds ratio
0.88; p<0.001), diabetes (OR 0.80; p<0.001), hyperlipidemia (OR 0.81; p<0.001),
and CVD (OR 0.91; p=0.008) than women who never breast-fed, but they were not
less likely to be obese.”(Nainggolan, TheHeart.org) This scientific jargon is expected
to be found, for instance, in the actual report of the scientific study, but not
necessarily in news articles outlining the study.
Another article I read, based off of the same study as the previous one I discussed,
was written to be read by the actual people the study involved, mothers. This is so
clear for two reasons, from the title of the article “The Link Between Weight Loss
and Breastfeeding” as it is commonly known that one of the main concerns for new
mothers is losing the weight they had gained during the pregnancy, and also from
the first sentence of the article, “Note to new moms: If you breastfeed now, you'll be
more likely to slip back into those skinny jeans for years to come.” (Tucker,
Huffingtonpost.com) The author makes the connection between this study and its
usefulness to new mothers very clear, by directly speaking to whom the article is
written for. The article doesn’t go into a great amount of detail about the study itself,
just how its findings may affect the reader. It describes to the reader how and a little
bit why their decision to breastfeed may allow them to lose weight faster, keep
weight off longer, and prevent diabetes, which most people know to be often related
to and caused by excess weight. The author also used vocabulary that was quite
casual, using terms like “skinny jeans” and “apples and pears” in relation to body
types and where people store fat, along with quoting waist measurements rather
than BMI measurements. The author was able to determine who would read this
article by relating the study to issues that even the most average and seemingly
shallow of people care about, their body image.

A third article, “One More Way to Avoid Diabetes: Breastfeed”, appealed to

concerned mothers of newborn babies. The title also indicates that the audience
may already be somewhat familiar with health issues, as it describes ‘one more way’
indicating that the reader already knows some ways to avoid diabetes. The article
indicates that it is to be read by concerned mothers in that its first statement is
about the benefits of breastfeeding for the child. It goes on to describe the findings
in the study about how breastfeeding may benefit the mother as well. Later on in the
article it also talks about statistics of how many women breastfeed versus how
many do. It also offers a link to a website containing pros and cons of breastfeeding,
which leads me to believe that the audience is mainly expecting or new mothers.
These are the only people who would be debating between breastfeeding and not
breastfeeding. The article also clearly indicates its audience with its closing
statements and quotes. In closing it speaks of how women who have chosen not to
breastfeed can still keep themselves from risk of Type 2 diabetes adding “even if it
doesn't replace the health dividends the babies would be receiving if they were
breastfed.”(Park, TIME.com) This statement really pushes on the benefits of
breastfeeding for babies, which most new mothers are most concerned with, the
health of their new child. The closing quote also speaks directly to women who may
be making a breastfeeding decision soon saying, ‘ "And if you are pregnant or
thinking about getting pregnant, or currently breastfeeding, then stick with it
because it's important to both your baby's and your own health." ’(Park, TIME.com).
I noticed that the author always added the aspect of the baby’s health wherever
possible, playing on the maternal instinct of the reader.

A good indication of how the article will be written is where it is published. The first
article I analyzed as being quite scientific in jargon and very similar to the journal
article itself was published on “TheHeart.org”. After exploring the website a bit, it
seemed to be more a reference and news site for people who were scientifically
educated, doctors etc. Not only was the site meant for people with a scientific
background, but more specifically, people with a background in the cardiovascular
system. This specific audience gives clues as to why the author would use terms like
“CVD”, meaning cardiovascular disease. The second article, “The Link Between
Weight Loss and Breastfeeding”, that focused on the weight issues of the study was
published in The Huffington Post. While this news site seems credible, I noticed that
it is quite a jumble of information, and that it is not strictly news. The other links on
the same page as this article were rather “fluffy” such as “Christina Aguilera Falls on
Stage at Grammys” and a compilation of the Grammys best dressed list. It seems to
be a site where people would go to be entertained, and sometimes find bits of news
about scientific studies such as this one. This may be why the author wrote in less of
a scientific way and more of a casual way, focusing on a non-academic and
somewhat superficial portion of people’s lives, their weight. The third article was
published on TIME magazine’s website. TIME magazine has long been a credible
source of news that people trust, but at the same time, a source of news that allows
for any person to pick it up,read it and understand it. Also, the website was
organized as such that only people wanting to know about this particular topic
would come across it, i.e new mothers looking for information on breastfeeding.

Overall it seems as though each article was attempting to reach the same message,
that breastfeeding is good for the mother’s long-term health. The news media
articles applied mainly to women, but contained information that either sex may
find interesting. The first article, “Breast is best: New WHI data extend CV benefits
of breast-feeding to mom”, may have been appealing to doctors, who may then
recommend breastfeeding to their patients. The second article, “The Link Between
Weight Loss and Breastfeeding”, appealed to more of a “housewife” type, who may
chat about the weight-losing benefits of breastfeeding to friends. The third article,
“One More Way to Avoid Diabetes: Breastfeed”, appealed to a concerned mother,
relaying the benefits of breastfeeding not only to herself, but to her baby as well.
Either way, all three news media articles got their information from the same place
and all the information was accurate, but how it was staged and laid out really
depended on the audience they had at hand and the audience they were trying to
attract.
 Works Cited

Nainggolan, Lisa. "Breast Is Best: New WHI Data Extend CV Benefits of Breast-

feeding to Mom." Theheart.org. 23 Apr. 2009. Web. 13 Feb. 2011.

<http://www.theheart.org/article/962899.do>.

Park, Alice. "One More Way to Avoid Diabetes: Breastfeed." TIME.com. TIME

Magazine, 27 Aug. 2010. Web. 13 Feb. 2011.

<http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2014227,00.html>.

Schwarz, Eleanor B., Jeanette S. Brown, Jennifer M. Creasman, Alison Stuebe,

Candace K. McClure, Stephen K. Van Den Eeden, and David Thom. "Lactation

and Maternal Risk of Type 2 Diabetes: A Population-based Study." The

American Journal of Medicine 123 (2010). Print.

Tucker, John H. "The Link Between Weight Loss and Breastfeeding." The Huffington

Post. 3 Sept. 2010. Web. 13 Feb. 2011.

<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-h-tucker/mothers-who-breastfeed-

fo_b_704608.html>.