The Project File Details
- Name: KMOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE OF EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING IN ADAMAWA STATE (CASE STUDY; YOLA SOUTH)
- Type: PDF and MS Word (DOC)
- Size: [300 KB]
- Length: [63] Pages
ABSTRACT
The importance of breast milk over all other types of milk as the main food
source for infants cannot be over-emphasized as established by numerous health and
nutrition organizations. Early childhood is characterized by rapid growth,
development of tissues and formation of organs. Breastfeeding is the optimal method
for feeding infants. All the nutritional needs of children are provided by breast milk
in the right amounts and duration. In Nigeria however, young infants may not benefit
from this practice as a result of poor early initiation and the use of other liquids
undermining breast milk. Therefore, the practice of exclusive breastfeeding has been
recognized as a very important public health tool in preventing child morbidity and
mortality. Consequently, the WHO and UNICEF passed bills that recommended
exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and subsequent introduction to
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complementary foods. However, efforts to promote exclusive breastfeeding have
achieved limited success and run into severe problems due to poor understanding of
the several influences on the practice. As a social institution and more importantly
the basic unit of society, the aim of this study was to seek an in-depth understanding
of family influences on exclusive breastfeeding and to determine the knowledge and
practice of exclusive breastfeeding among mothers of infants in the Wurro-Chekke
area of Yola South, Adamawa State.
Using a qualitative method with unstructured interviews as data collection
instrument; a total of one hundred and thirty mothers with children aged 7 to 24
months participated in the study. All interviews were audio taped, transcribed, and
analyzed using several analytic procedures. Four themes emerged in relation to the
forms of family influences on exclusive breastfeeding: family knowledge of
exclusive breastfeeding; collective sense of duty; family beliefs and practices and
learning to breastfeed. Given how the family participates and influence infant
feeding practices, it is suggested that public health education must aim at increasing
the awareness of family members on breastfeeding recommendations and also strive
to work with traditional and community leaders so as to modify and/or discourage
practices that involve feeding newborns with herbal remedies and concoctions.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title page ……………………………………………………………………………………….. i
Certification…………………………………………………………………………………… ii
Readers’ approval………………………………………………………………………….. iii
Dedication ……………………………………………………………………………………. iv
Acknowledgement……………………………………………………………………….. v-vi
Abstract ………………………………………………………………………………….. viii-ix
Table of contents ………………………………………………………………………… x-xi
List of tables………………………………………………………………xii
Abbreviations …………………………………………………………………………….. xiii
1.0 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………… 1
1.1 Definitions of terms …………………………………………………………. 2
1.2 The historical context of breastfeeding ………………………………. 4
1.3 Exclusive breastfeeding trends around the World ………………… 6
1.4 Benefits of exclusive breastfeeding to infants and mothers …… 8
1.5 Strategies for breast feeding promotion……………………………… 10
1.6 Socio-economic benefits of breastfeeding …………………………. 13
1.7 Challenges to breastfeeding ……………………………………………… 16
1.8 Factors that contribute to low rates of breast feeding in
Adamawa State. ……………………………………………………………… 19
1.9 Specific Aims, current study, or objectives ……………………….. 21
2.0 Material and methods ………………………………………………………………. 23
2.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………….. 23
2.2 Study area …………………………………………………………………….. 23
2.3 Sampling technique ……………………………………………………….. 24
2.4 Study area visitation and pilot test ……………………………………. 25
2.5 Data collection ………………………………………………………………. 25
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2.6 Analytical technique ………………………………………………………. 25
2.7 Limitations ……………………………………………………………………. 27
3.0 Results …………………………………………………………………………………… 26
4.0 Discussion ……………………………………………………………………………… 36
5.0 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………………….. 43
5.1 Recommendation …………………………………………………………… 44
References ………………………………………………………………………… 46
Appendix ………………………………………………………………………….. 50
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
1.0 Introduction:
Over several decades; there has been increasing interest in the promotion of
exclusive breastfeeding as the ‘best’ feeding method for infants. If all babies in the
World were breastfed exclusively, about 1.5 million lives would be saved annually.
Not only would they survive but their lives would be greatly enhanced as well. This
is because breastmilk is the best food for the first six months of a baby’s life and no
formula or product can ever replace it. All children benefit from being breast fed
regardless of their geographical location and breastmilk is composed of all the
necessary nutrients needed for babies to grow up healthy and strong. In resourcelimited
areas, poor breastfeeding practices usually results in child malnutrition which
is a major cause of more than half of all child deaths (Sokol et al. 2007), exclusive
breastfeeding is regarded as imperative for infants’ survival. Of the 7 million under
five children who were reported dead globally in 2011, an estimated 1 million lives
could have been saved by simple and accessible practices such as exclusive
breastfeeding (WHO, 2012). Consequently, the (WHO and UNICEF 1990) have
recommended exclusive breastfeeding for six months, followed by introduction of
complementary foods and continued breastfeeding for 18 months or more.
2
Breastfeeding is an ultimate biological and cultural phenomenon; in humans, it is not
only just a biological process but also a culturally determined behavior (Stuart-
Macadam and Dettwyler, 1995: pp.5-6). In Nigeria, about 97% of children begin
breastfeeding from birth and continue to four (4) months (National Demographic and
Health Survey, 1990). By 12 months, the proportion of children exclusively breastfed
is higher in Uganda than in Nigeria. Ugandan children less than six (6) months of
age, approximately 57 percent are exclusively breastfed compared to approximately
1 percent of Nigerian children. (WHO, 1996). The benefits of exclusive
breastfeeding are numerous. Breastfeeding, a primary means of promoting and
supporting good nutrition in developing countries, is universally high in Nigeria;
however, exclusive breastfeeding during the first 6 months of life as recommended
by the World Health Organisation (WHO) is far less common. According to the
National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS, 1990, only 38 percent of women
in Nigeria initiated breastfeeding within the first hour of delivery and less than onefifth
(17 per cent) of infants under 6 months of age are exclusively breastfed.
1.1 Definition of terms:
Breastfeeding: – Is the practice of feeding an infant, or sometimes a toddler
or a young child, with milk produced from her mammary glands, usually directly
from the nipples.
Colostrum: Colostrum is the first fluid that comes from the breast
immediately after birth. It is yellowish in color and contains high protein and antibodies.
It is often described as the first form of ‘immunization’ for a new born child.
3
Exclusive breastfeeding: refers to when infants are not given any other food
or liquid including water during the first six months after delivery.
Exclusive artificial feeding: a feeding method that solely involves the use of
none breast milk foods.
Lactation: is the period during which a woman produces milk from the
breasts to feed a baby.
Malnutrition: is a poor condition of health caused by a lack of food or a lack
of the right type of food.
Predominant or mixed breastfeeding: – Is the practice of feeding breast
milk along with some form of substitute.
Prelacteal feeds: Prelacteal feeds are fluids given to newborns before
breastfeeding is initiated.
Postpartum: the immediate period after child birth especially the first 6
weeks.
Stunting: it is also referred to as ‘shortness’. It is a condition characterized
by low height for age that is caused by insufficient nutrition over a long period and
regular infections.
Wasting: this is also known as ‘thinness’. It is a condition characterized by
low weight for height that is caused by acute food shortage.
Weaning: this refers to a practice in the course of breastfeeding during which
infants are
4
gradually introduced to non-breast milk foods and thereby leading to cessation of
breastfeeding.
Wet nurse: a woman who breastfeeds another woman’s baby. In addition to
the feeding, a wet nurse may also be tasked to take care of the baby usually for a fee.
1.2 The historical context of breastfeeding:
All hominoids have similar distinct features of their reproductive features
including the process of lactation and breastfeeding (Kennedy, 2005); yet
anthropologists’ work has been scanty (Sellen, 2009), this is partly due to the maledominated
researches that have focused predominantly on male activities neglecting
female related ones such as breastfeeding and childbirth (Stuart-Macadam and
Dettwyler,1995). However; breast feeding has been reported as an age-old process
that is concerned with the structure, function and well-being of neonates as well as
the health of the mothers. There is no society that exists without some form of infant
breastfeeding; as it is one of the human practices that have transcended through time
and place. This has been a method of feeding which has been ingrained in our DNA
and upon which the human existence is based on. For several centuries, breast
feeding has been significantly practiced, respected, and the primary attractor of many
artistic works such as paintings, drawing, and sculptures (Tonz, 2000; Sellen, 2009).
In most ancient societies, breastfeeding practices are principally guided by
traditions, religious literature; etc. Besides, early religious scriptures such as the
Bible and the Quran also had and still have some recommendations on breastfeeding
practices. In Isaiah chapter 66 verse 11, it is mentioned ‘that ye may suck, and be
satisfy with.
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