Prevalence and determinants of exclusive breastfeeding; a cross sectional study in Najaf city, Iraq

Objective: To determine the prevalence of exclusive and continued breastfeeding in an urban setting, and the factors influencing the choice.Method: The cross-sectional study was conducted from February 1 to August 30, 2018, in Najaf, Iraq, and comprised children aged up to 2 years from 12 randomly selected primary healthcare centres. Data were collected using a predesigned questionnaire that had three parts covering the mother, the child and the demographic variables. Data was analysed using SPSS 20.Results: Of the 373 subjects, 209(56.0%) were males. The overall mean age was 8.8 +/- 6.2 months (range: 1-23 months), while the mean age of the mothers was 26.5 +/- 5.8 years (range: 15-46 years). Children aged <6 months were 169(45.3%), and, among them, exclusive breastfeeding was found in 66(39.1%) cases. There was significant relationship between exclusive breastfeeding and feeding of other siblings (p=0.001), admission to hospital (p=0.02), family support (p=0.009), husband's support (p=0.007). Child sickness in early life also had significant association with exclusive breastfeeding (p<0.05).Conclusions: The prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding was found within the reported estimate for low-and middle-income countries, but much lower than the World Health Organisation recommendation.

Automated summary

This study investigated the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding and the factors influencing the choice in an urban area in Najaf, Iraq. The results showed that the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding was lower than the recommendation of the World Health Organization and was associated with feeding of other siblings, hospital admission, family support, husband's support, and child sickness in early life.