THE KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE OF EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING AMONG MARKET WOMEN: A SURVEY AT BANTAMA

Abstract

Every infant and child has the right to good nutrition according to the "Convention on the Rights of the Child 2015". Globally in 2015, 156 million children under 5 were estimated to be stunted, 50 million were estimated to be wasted, and 42 million were overweight or obese. About 43% of infants 0–6 months old are exclusively breastfed. Few children receive nutritionally adequate and safe complementary foods; in many countries less than a fourth of infants 6–23 months of age meet the criteria of dietary diversity and feeding frequency that are appropriate for their age. Over 800 000 children's lives could be saved every year among children under 5 years, if all children 0–23 months were optimally breastfed (WHO Facts Sheet, 2015). WHO and UNICEF recommend: early initiation of breastfeeding within 1 hour of birth; exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life; and introduction of nutritionally-adequate and safe complementary (solid) foods at 6 months together with continued breastfeeding up to 2 years of age or beyond(WHO Facts Sheet, 2015) . Exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months has many benefits for the infant and mother. Chief among these is protection against gastrointestinal infections which is observed not only in developing but also industrialized countries.