Journal
PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITION
Volume 13, Issue 4, Pages 556-565Publisher
CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1017/S1368980009991364
Keywords
Complementary feeding; Educational intervention; China
Funding
- Proctor & Gamble Fellowship through Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
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Objective: Inappropriate complementary feeding is one of the major causes of malnutrition in young children in developing countries. We developed an educational intervention, delivered by local health-care providers, aimed at improving complementary feeding practices and child nutrition. Design: Eight townships in Laishui, a rural area in China, were randomly assigned to the educational intervention or control group. A total of 599 healthy infants were enrolled at age 2-4 months and followed up until 1 year of age. in the intervention group, educational messages and enhanced home-prepared recipes were disseminated to caregivers through group trainings and home visits. Questionnaire surveys and anthropometric measurements were taken at baseline and ages 6, 9 and 12 months. Analysis was by intention to treat. Results: It was found that food diversity, meal frequency and hygiene practices were improved in the intervention group. Infants in the intervention group gained 0.22 kg more weight (95% CI 0.003, 0.45 kg, P = 0.047) and gained 0.66 cm more length (95% CI 0.03, 1.29 cm, P = 0.04) than did controls over the study period. Conclusions: Findings from the study suggest that an educational intervention delivered through local health-care providers can lead to substantial behavioural changes of caregivers and improve infant growth.
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