Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, P.O. Box LG 13, Legon, Ghana.
BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2020 Sep 29;20(1):575. doi: 10.1186/s12884-020-03272-5.
Exclusive Breastfeeding (EBF), for the first 6 months of life, is globally accepted as the preferred method for infant feeding. In Ghana, an estimated 84% of children < 2 months old are exclusively breastfed. But by age 4 to 5 months, only 49% continue to receive EBF. This situation continues to deteriorate. Thus, the need to explore perceptions, practices as well as factors that influence EBF in Ghana.
Using a qualitative design, four focus group discussions were conducted among first-time mothers and eight in-depth interviews with health workers and traditional birth attendants. The study was conducted in four communities in the Kassena-Nankana municipality of Ghana. Discussions and interviews were recorded and later transcribed verbatim to English language. The transcribed data was then coded with the aid of analysis computer software (Nvivo version 10.0) and later analyzed for the generation of themes.
Exclusive breastfeeding is practiced among first-time mothers due to its perceived benefits; which include nutritional advantage, ability to enhance growth whilst boosting immunity and its economic value. However misconceptions as well as, certain cultural practices (e.g. giving herbal concoctions, breastmilk purification rites), and relational influences, may threaten a mother's intention to exclusively breastfeed. Relational influences are mainly from mother in-laws, traditional birth attendants, grandmothers, herbalists and other older adults in the community.
Although first time mothers attempt EBF, external influences make it practically challenging. The availability and utilization of information on EBF was found to positively influence perceptions towards EBF, leading to change in attitude towards the act. Thus, the practice of community-based health services may be strengthened to provide support for first-time mothers as well as continuous education to the mother in laws, female elders and community leaders who influence decision making on breastfeeding of infants.
全球范围内，纯母乳喂养（EBF）被认为是婴儿喂养的首选方式，即婴儿在生命的头 6 个月仅接受母乳喂养。在加纳，据估计，84%的<2 个月大的儿童是纯母乳喂养的。但到 4 至 5 个月大时，只有 49%的儿童继续接受纯母乳喂养。这种情况持续恶化。因此，有必要探索加纳人对 EBF 的看法、做法以及影响 EBF 的因素。
采用定性设计，在加纳卡塞纳-纳纳基纳市的四个社区中，对首次当母亲的人进行了四次焦点小组讨论，并对 8 名卫生工作者和传统助产妇进行了 8 次深入访谈。讨论和访谈进行了录音，然后逐字转录成英文。转录后的资料借助分析计算机软件（Nvivo 版本 10.0）进行编码，然后对其进行分析以生成主题。
首次当母亲的人实施纯母乳喂养是因为她们认为母乳喂养有好处；其中包括营养优势、促进生长和增强免疫力的能力以及经济价值。然而，一些误解以及某些文化习俗（例如，服用草药混合物、母乳净化仪式）和关系影响可能会威胁到母亲进行纯母乳喂养的意愿。关系影响主要来自婆婆、传统助产妇、祖母、草药师和社区内的其他老年人。
尽管首次当母亲的人尝试纯母乳喂养，但外部影响使其难以实现。发现提供和利用有关纯母乳喂养的信息对母乳喂养的看法有积极影响，从而导致对母乳喂养行为的态度发生变化。因此，可以加强社区为基础的卫生服务的实践，为首次当母亲的人提供支持，并为婆婆、女性长辈和影响婴儿母乳喂养决策的社区领袖提供持续教育。
