Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Exclusive Breastfeeding amongst Mothers of Infants in Gwagwalada Area Council, FCT, Abuja, Nigeria

Abstract

Exclusive breastfeeding provides nutritional, and developmental psychological advantages with regard to general wellbeing of an infant and has dramatically reduced infant deaths in developing countries. This study assessed the Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Exclusive Breastfeeding among women attending antenatal clinic in four communities within Gwagwalada Area Council of FCT, Abuja. The questionnaire sought socio-demographic information, Religion and cultural influence as well as knowledge and awareness level of EBF practice. The data collected was analyzed using Odd ratio, frequencies and simple percentages. The result of the study showed that 70.0% had the knowledge of exclusive breastfeeding, 54.4% exclusively breastfed their newborns for the first six months of life. There was positive attitude among the participants towards exclusive breastfeeding as 70.0% of them agreed that breast milk alone is sufficient for the baby during the first six months of life. There was high level of knowledge on exclusive breastfeeding among the
respondents, almost half of the participants practiced exclusive breastfeeding and relatively all the respondents had positive attitude toward exclusive breastfeeding. However, Illiteracy (60.0%; OR = 1.5) and Culture (66.7%; OR = 2.0) negatively influenced exclusive breastfeeding in the area council. Although, majority of the women in this study had good knowledge and attitude towards Exclusive Breastfeeding (EBF), the practice is not high. There is still need for improvement. More awareness on the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding must be emphasized in order to increase the knowledge and compliance of the women as only 54.4% actually practiced it. Promotion of EBF should involve programmes that will capture not only nursing mothers and health workers, but other members in the communities, most especially husbands and older women who are involved in child care.