Determinants of Breastfeeding Practices among Working Mothers in Solwezi District of Zambia

Background: As one of the strategies to reduce infant morbidity and mortality, the World Health Organization recommends early initiation of exclusive breastfeeding and timely introduction of complementary feeding with continued breastfeeding for up to two years or beyond. Although breastfeeding is a natural process, it is influenced by different socio-cultural factors, habits, standards, and behaviours. Rapid industrialization and changes in lifestyle have seen increasing numbers of women in the labour force, and associated poor Exclusive Breastfeeding practices among working mothers. The aim of this study was to identify the determinants of breastfeeding practices among working mothers in Solwezi District of Zambia. Methods: This was a cross-sectional comparative survey comparing determinants of breastfeeding practices among working mothers aged 15 - 49 years in urban and rural areas of Solwezi District. The study was carried out in the Under-five Clinics at Solwezi, Kimasala and Mushitala Urban Clinics, as well as St. Francis, Kapijimpanga and Kisalala Rural Health Centers. Eighty-seven participants were successfully recruited using convenience sampling. A researcher-assisted questionnaire was used to collect data. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 27.0. Descriptive statistical analysis was done using numerical measures such as measures of central tendency and dispersion. The Pearson Chi Square test, correlation and linear regression analysis were performed to test association between the variables at the 0.05 level of significance. Are you assessing exclusive breastfeeding alone or what? Results: The mean age of respondents was 27.44 years (SD = 6.042 years) and the majority of the respondents were married (71.3%, n = 62). Forty-three percent of the respondents were self-employed while the rest were in formal government or private sector employment. Overall, 97.7% of the respondents had heard of exclusive breastfeeding, with health facilities being the most frequent source of information (64.4%). Attitude towards exclusive breastfeeding was generally positive. Fifty-eight percent of respondents exclusively breastfed while the rest were on mixed feeding. Seventy-one percent of respondents reported that their workplaces did not have breastfeeding facilities at work. Only 11.5% of the respondents reported having cultural beliefs restricting breastfeeding. Statistically significant associations were obtained from cross-tabulation analysis between respondent’s occupation and baby feeding type (p 0.001);workload and feeding type (0.024);as well as knowledge of EBF and feeding type (p 0.001). Conclusion: Majority of the respondents demonstrated good knowledge and positive attitude towards exclusive breastfeeding. This study recommends sensitization campaigns in communities to raise awareness about the importance of breastfeeding, and foster behaviour change that promotes breastfeeding.

Factors associated with breastfeeding duration:a prospective cohort study in Sichuan Province,China

Background:The World Health Organization(WHO)recommends exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months and continued breastfeeding thereafter with appropriate complementary foods for at least 2 years or longer.This study aimed to determine the factors associated with breastfeeding duration in Sichuan Province of China.Methods:A prospective longitudinal study of 695 women,with a follow-up response rate of 71.9%,was conducted in Jiangyou,Sichuan Province in the period of 2010-2011.Participants were interviewed at discharge and followed up by telephone at 1,3,6 and 12 months postpartum.Breastfeeding duration was estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method.Cox regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with the breastfeeding duration.Results:The median duration of"any breastfeeding"was 8.0[95%confidence interval(CI):7.8,8.2]months.Maternal age less than 25 years[adjusted hazard ratio(HR):1.61;95%CI:1.32,1.96]and maternal return to work before 6 months postpartum(adjusted HR:1.69;95%CI:1.32,2.17)were associated with a shorter duration of breastfeeding.Women who delivered at hospital(adjusted HR:1.33;95%CI:1.05,1.67),introduced solid foods(adjusted HR:130;95%CI:1.02,1.64)and intended to stop breastfeeding within 6 months,or undecided how long to breastfeed(adjusted HR:1.41;95%CI:1.16,1.72),were more likely to terminate lactation within 1 year.Conclusions:The duration of breastfeeding in Jiangyou was far below the recommendation of the WHO.Education programs targeting vulnerable subgroups of mothers should be provided in Sichuan to help them maintain breastfeeding as long as possible.