ABSTRACT

The lactation period is a major source of concern in developing countries because of its positive impact on the health and nutrition of mothers and children. Adequate nutrition for the mothers is therefore important for their good health as well as for that of their offspring. This study assessed the dietary practices of breastfeeding mothers attending postnatal clinics at Federal Medical Center, Umuahia Abia State. The study was a cross-sectional study. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to select a total of 120 mothers. Data on socio demographic and socio economic characteristics, feeding habits and anthropometric status of mothers were collected using structured and validated questionnaire. The IBM SPSS version 22.0 computer programme was used to analyze the data. Data obtained were presented using frequency and percentage. Pearson correlation was used to analyze the association between socio demographic/economic characteristics, dietary pattern and nutritional status of the breastfeeding mothers. A p value of <0.05 was considered significant. The result from this study revealed that more than half (58.3%) of the women were between 21-30 years. Majority (80.8%) of them were married and most (61.7%) of them have 1-2 children already. (40.0%) of the lactating mothers usually skip breakfast meals. From the anthropometric status, more than half (53.3%) of the women were overweight while 27.5% were obese. The result findings of the anthropometric indices (hip/wait ratio) of the breastfeeding mothers showed that majority (72.5%) of them were normal while (27.6%) were at risk of cardiovascular diseases. there was significant positive relationship between monthly income and consumption of ultra-processed foods. Result findings on the dietary pattern showed that most (60.0%) of the mothers usually eat from home, 24.2% of them buy junk foods while 9.2% of them eat fast foods, majority (87.5%) of the respondents are able to make effective food choice. However, more than half (56.7%) of the respondents consume food 3 times in a day while 19.2% of them consume food twice a day. There was also a significant relationship between body mass index of mothers, consumption of ultra-processed foods and age of mothers. Intervention programs such as nutrition education and dietary diversity should be emphasized during antenatal and lactation period to improve better health and nutrition outcomes.