Abstract:
Background. There are limited longitudinal data from
developing countries on early infant feeding and growth
patterns. In Kenya only 34.8% of infants are exclusively
breastfed at 2 months. This finding is of concern, and
further understanding of infant feeding and growth pat-
terns is important.
Objective. To determine the feeding and growth pat-
terns of Kenyan term infants during early infancy.
Methods. A longitudinal study was conducted. One
hundred and fifty-one resource-constrained mother–
infant pairs were recruited from the West Municipal
Health Centre (WMHC) within 24 hours after birth,
and subsequent follow-up was performed at the WMHC
Maternal and Child Health Clinic. Data on baseline
characteristics were collected with the use of a structured
questionnaire. Data on nonbreastmilk liquids given to
the infants and feeding patterns were gathered with the
use of a 24-hour recall. Standard procedures were used
to measure infant weight, recumbent length, and head
circumference. World Health Organization (WHO)
growth standards were used, and tests for variation
between and within group means were performed, with
α < .05 regarded as indicating significance.
Results. At 6 and 10 weeks, the prevalence of exclusive
breastfeeding was 40.4% and 9.9%, respectively. The
mothers cited “aids infant’s digestion” (38%) as the main
reason for partial breastfeeding and “breastmilk was
not enough” (48%) as the main reason for predominant
breastfeeding. Growth velocity based on weight was
similar to that in the WHO reference group. All of the
children had normal growth (z-score > –2). Mothers
without knowledge about WHO/UNICEF early infant
feeding recommendations and those who initiated breast-
feeding more than 1 hour post partum were ninefold and eightfold more likely to start mixed feeding by 10 weeks
of age, respectively.
Conclusions. There is a need to accelerate aware-
ness of optimum infant feeding recommendations and
augment the rigorous practice of the WHO Ten Steps to
Successful Breastfeeding.
