Assessment of infant feeding and care practices among nursing mothers in Asante Akim central

Abstract

Childbirth and infancy are the most important and delicate parts of the development of babies. Regarding this, adequate nutrition during infancy and early childhood is essential to ensure child growth, health and development. This study therefore sought to assess the infant feeding and care practices among nursing mothers in the Asante Akim District of Ghana. The objectives of the study were to (1) determine the level of breastfeeding and complementary feeding awareness among nursing mothers in the study area, (2) investigate the complementary and breastfeeding practices among nursing mothers, (3) evaluate sources of water and water management practices among nursing mothers and (4) determine the hygiene practices of nursing mothers when feeding their babies. The researcher employed the descriptive survey design for this study. With a population comprising all mothers with children aged between 0 – 18 months, a sample of one hundred and fifty (150) participants was selected randomly from a strata of five communities. The researcher used observation and questionnaire as instruments for data collection. Analysis of the collected data was mainly done through the use of SPSS with descriptive statistics such as frequencies, means and percentages. The study found the level of breastfeeding and complementary feeding awareness of nursing mothers to be very high. However, the actual feeding practices left much to be desired as a significant proportion of mothers did not practice Exclusive Breastfeeding for the first six months whilst others did not give the all-essential ‘first milk’ colostrum to their infants. The study again revealed that the water management practices of mothers were good and had access to clean and safe drinking water. It was also found that majority of nursing mothers practiced good hygiene but did not sterilize their feeding equipment. The study recommends policy change such as longer maternity leaves for nursing mothers, higher formal education for females and intensive education for nursing mothers through home visits by health care officials to ensure optimal feeding practices of babies.