Exclusive Breastfeeding Rates And Determinants: A Prospective Observational Study

Exclusive breastfeeding during the early months of life reduce infant morbidity and mortality. Breastfeeding rates are generally assessed by the 24-recall method, which overestimates the actual rates. The objective of this study was to determine actual exclusive breastfeeding rates in a cohort of Zwara and neighboring cities to determine the reasons that lead to cessation of breastfeeding before six months of age. All 87 full-term newborns in Zwara  and Al-Jmail hospitals from January to September 2010, invited for the study. Out of 73 who agreed to participate in the study 72 were followed up at two, 72 at four, and 69 at six months. An interviewer administered questionnaire asked about feeding history and socio-demographic characteristics. Child health development record was used to assess the growth. Exclusive breastfeeding rates at two; four and six months were 94.44%, 86.11% and 75.36% respectively. The main reasons to stop exclusive breastfeeding between two to four months was because of the mother anxiety about the baby’s development. Majority of the babies that were not exclusively breastfed still continued to have breast milk. Second, and third born babies had lower rates than first born respectively. Maternal anxiety due to fear of inadequate breast milk is an important factor for failure of lactation at the first 4 months. Mothers starting to work and concerns about adequacy of breast milk were major reasons to cease exclusively breastfeeding.