Women's social representations of the smell of breast milk

摘要

Objective: To analyze women's social representations of the smell of breast milk. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted in 2015 with 33 puerperal women in a university hospital in the state of Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil, through individual semi-structured interviews. The data collected, submitted to the IRAMUTEQ software, were interpreted in the light of the Theory of Social Representations. Results: Among the social representations, acceptance was prevalent even when the olfactory perception of breast milk was unpleasant, so that the importance of this food for children's health stood out. Other representations were the discomfort caused by this smell and the care to minimize it, the support of partners, the detachment in interpersonal relationships, and the characterization of the smell/taste of milk. Conclusion: Acceptance was most evident among the social representations of the smell of milk. However, unpleasant perceptions were observed, evidencing that these features of human milk should be included in the guidelines for women and their families since prenatal care.