Chipanha Leonida Tawa, Katalambula Leonard
University of Dodoma, College of Health science, Department of Nursing and Midwifery.
The University of Dodoma, School of Nursing and Public Health, Department of Public Health.
East Afr Health Res J. 2024;8(2):180-187. doi: 10.24248/eahrj.v8i2.779. Epub 2024 Jun 26.
The survival, well-being, and development of young children depend on optimal infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices. It is imperative to assess nutrition status and feeding behaviour practices in order to develop interventions. The objective of this study is to assess nutrition status, feeding behaviour, and its association with nutrition status among children aged 6 to 23 months old in Bahi district, Tanzania.
A community-based, cross-sectional study was employed. A multistage sampling technique was used. Bahi district council, wards, and village were randomly selected, and then a systematic random sampling method was used to select participants. Anthropometric measurements were used to determine the nutrition status of children. Process for the Promotion of Child Feeding (ProPAN) manual guided assessment of feeding behaviours associated with nutrition status. Z-score was used to determine the level of malnutrition; the chi-square test and logistic regression were used as descriptive and inferential statistical tests, respectively, to determine the association between nutrition status and feeding behaviour.
Out of 395 children aged between 6 and 23 months, 62.8% were stunted, 25.3% were underweight, and 6.6% were wasted. In the multivariable analysis, the results reveal that stunting was significantly associated with perception of exclusive breastfeeding (number of months) (AOR 4.24, 95%CI: 2.012-8.284) and number of feeds per day (AOR 2.02, 95%CI: 1.00-6.314). With regard to perception of exclusive breastfeeding (number of months), the children whose mothers perceived that children supposed to be breastfed for more than six months were four times more likely to be not stunted compared to those who were perceived to be breastfed less than three months, and the children whose mothers' fed them twice to three times were two times more likely to be not stunted compared to the children who were fed only two times.
Bahi district council has a higher prevalence rate of stunting, underweight, and wasting among children aged 6 to 23 months. Feeding on the first colostrum, exclusive breastfeeding, and breastfeeding for more than six months are the main determinants of nutrition status.
幼儿的生存、福祉和发展取决于最佳的婴幼儿喂养（IYCF）做法。为了制定干预措施，评估营养状况和喂养行为做法至关重要。本研究的目的是评估坦桑尼亚巴希区6至23个月大儿童的营养状况、喂养行为及其与营养状况的关联。
采用基于社区的横断面研究。使用了多阶段抽样技术。随机选择巴希区议会、选区和村庄，然后使用系统随机抽样方法选择参与者。采用人体测量学方法确定儿童的营养状况。《促进儿童喂养手册》（ProPAN）指导评估与营养状况相关的喂养行为。使用Z评分确定营养不良程度；分别使用卡方检验和逻辑回归作为描述性和推断性统计检验，以确定营养状况与喂养行为之间的关联。
在395名6至23个月大的儿童中，62.8%发育迟缓，25.3%体重不足，6.6%消瘦。在多变量分析中，结果显示发育迟缓与纯母乳喂养的认知（月数）（调整后比值比[AOR]4.24，95%置信区间[CI]：2.012 - 8.284）和每日喂养次数（AOR 2.02，95%CI：1.00 - 6.314）显著相关。关于纯母乳喂养的认知（月数），与母亲认为母乳喂养少于三个月的儿童相比，母亲认为应母乳喂养超过六个月的儿童发育迟缓的可能性降低四倍；与每天仅喂养两次的儿童相比，母亲每天喂养两到三次的儿童发育迟缓的可能性降低两倍。
巴希区议会辖区内6至23个月大儿童的发育迟缓、体重不足和消瘦患病率较高。初乳喂养、纯母乳喂养以及母乳喂养超过六个月是营养状况的主要决定因素。
