In India, according to National Family Health Survey-4, 45% were initiated breastfeeding within one hour of birth. The trend of exclusive breastfeeding for six months has increased from 46% in 2005-06 to 55% in 2015-16. 52.6% of children were introduced on complementary feeding. Only 9.8% of children received minimum acceptable diet for 6 to 24 months. 4 Despite several programmes and policies implemented by the ABSTRACT Background: Adequate nutrition in first 24 months through optimal Infant and Young Child feeding is fundamental for the development of the child. Hence assessment of Infant and Young child feeding practices rank among the most effective intervention is to meet the deficit improve the child health. Hence this study is conducted with the objective to assess the prevalence and factors influencing infant and young child feeding practices among the rural mothers of children aged less than two years. Methods: A cross sectional study was undertaken in the rural area of Kancheepuram district, Tamil Nadu from January 2017 to August 2017. 247 children of age less than two years were selected by two stage random sampling method. Data was collected house to house using pretested questionnaire and WHO infant and young child feeding questionnaire. Proportions were calculated and Chi square was applied. Results: The median age of the study participants were 9±7.1 months. 226 (91.5 %) were given colostrum and 163 (66%) were initiated breastfeeding within one hour after birth. 58.6% of children were introduced on soft/solid/semi solid food at the end of 6 to 8 months. In multiple logistic regression education of the mother, working status of the mother, number of antennal visits and place of delivery were associated with appropriate feeding practices. Conclusions: Maternal decision determines how an infant to be fed but it reflects the atmosphere by how they are influenced and adopted the decision.

Background: Appropriate Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices are a cornerstone to reduce child morbidity and mortality. Assessment of IYCF practices among the mother of young children is the need of the hour to find the breaches in their performance and to find out the influencing factors for these gaps. The study was undertaken with the objectives to assess the IYCF practices and the factors influencing among the children of age 7–24 months. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was undertaken in the rural area of Kancheepuram district, Tamilnadu from June 2019 to December 2019. One hundred forty-three children of age less than 2 years were selected by two-stage random sampling method. Data was collected house-to-house using the pretested questionnaire and WHO Infant and Young Child feeding questionnaire. Proportions were calculated and Chi-square test was applied. Results: The mean age of the children was 14 ± 5 months. Among the study participants, only 10.2% were exclusively breastfed for 6 months. 58.6% of children were introduced on soft/solid/semisolid food at the end of 6–8 months. The minimum acceptable diet of breastfeeding children was 31.5% and nonbreastfeeding children was 14%. Age of mother, educational qualification of mother, working status of mother, and mode of delivery were statistically associated with appropriate Infant and Young Children feeding practices. Conclusion: The results revealed that there is only improvement in early infant practices and there are indigent practices of complementary feeding among the mothers.

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