Knowledge, attitudes and practices of mothers of children aged 6 to 12 months on breastfeeding in the province of Sissili in Burkina Faso

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Résumé

Breastfeeding practices during the first 24 months of child lives are crucial for their health, development and survival. However, several factors influence mothers’ sensitivity to breastfeeding. The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of mothers of children aged 6 to 12 months on colostrum, early breastfeeding and ablactation age. It was a cross-sectional study whose population was selected on the basis of a reasoned choice. For this purpose, a questionnaire was administered to 163 mothers of child aged 6 to 12 months, before and after their participation at least 5 healthy infant consultation sessions coupled with culinary demonstrations in public
health facilities in the Sissili province of Burkina Faso. Chi-square and Wilcoxon rank tests were used to analyze the associations of variables and difference between the levels of mothers’ knowledge at the initial and final assessments, respectively.
Among surveyed mothers, colostrum was considered good for child health by 89.6% and 99.4% of mothers at initial and final assessments respectively. Most mothers (98.2%) gave colostrum and 3 out of 4 them breastfed their children at the first hour after childbirth. Early breastfeeding and colostrum breastfeeding by the mother were associated with their occupations (P < 0.05) and their attitude on the effect of colostrum on infant health (P < 0.05). Awareness significantly increased mother’s knowledge on the benefits of colostrum, ablactation age, time and benefits of early breastfeeding (P < 0.05). It also had a positive impact on mother’s opinion of the effect of colostrum
on infant health. Mothers’ participation in healthy infant consultation sessions combined with culinary demonstrations at health facilities in Sissili province had a positive impact on their knowledge and attitudes on breastfeeding. This could improve their breastfeeding practices in future births.

Mots-clés

Colostrum, Early breast-feeding, Attitude, Practice, Burkina Faso