Breastfeeding practices among mothers of children aged 1–24 months in Egor Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: The aim was to determine the breastfeeding practices of mothers of children two years and below in Egor Local Government Area (LGA) of Edo State. Design: This is a community-based descriptive cross-sectional study. Subjects were recruited consecutively by multi-staged sampling technique. A semi-structured researcher-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information from the respondents. Setting: Subjects were from the Edaiken community in Egor LGA State, Nigeria. Subjects: Mother and child pairs were recruited. Outcome measures: The early initiation of breastfeeding rate, prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding and the duration of breastfeeding were calculated from the information obtained from the mothers. Factors associated with the practice of early initiation of breastfeeding and exclusive breastfeeding were also determined. Results: A total of 186 mothers (44.5%) of the 418 recruited initiated breastfeeding (early) within one hour of delivery. The prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) was 36.6%. Maternal education was significantly associated with the practice of EBF while maternal age and delivery facility were significantly associated with early initiation of breastfeeding. The median duration of breastfeeding was 15.1 ± 2.3 months. Conclusion: Less than half of the mothers of children aged 1-24 months in Egor LGA practised early initiation of breastfeeding and exclusive breastfeeding. Nutritional education at the community level should be embarked upon by the Local Health Authority of Egor LGA to improve these practices.Keywords: breastfeeding practices, children aged 1-24 months, early initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding rate, Egor LGA, mothers IntroductionUnder-nutrition is estimated to cause 3.1 million child deaths annually worldwide. About half of all child deaths have been associated with under-nutrition.1 It has been estimated that optimal breastfeeding of children under two years of age has the potential to prevent 1.4 million deaths in children aged under five in the developing world annually.2 The period from birth to the second year of life is a vulnerable period for undernutrition as well as a critical window period for the promotion of optimal growth, health and behavioural development. Poor nutrition during this critical period is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, and delayed motor and mental development as immediate consequences, while impairments in intellectual performance, work capacity, reproductive outcomes and overall health during adolescence and adulthood constitute long-term consequences. The World Health Organization and the United Nation Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) have recommended that children should be exclusively breast fed for the first six months of life after which nutritionally adequate and safe complementary foods are commenced while continuing breastfeeding up to two years and beyond. 4 In addition to the nutritional benefits of breastfeeding there are other non-nutritional benefits to both the baby and ...

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