Abstract
BackgroundBreastfeeding practices and their impact on infant health and survival are unquestionably of global interest. The aim of this study was to examine the link between breastfeeding initiation within one hour of birth, breastfeeding duration and childhood mortality in sub-Saharan Africa.MethodsThis study used data from the Demographic and Health Survey, which was conducted in 35 Sub-Saharan African countries between 2008 and 2017. Early initiation and duration of breastfeeding, food consumption indices, and infant mortality were all important variables. Analysis used percentage, median/interquartile range, and regression models (logistic, linear, Cox).ResultsEarly initiation of breastfeeding within one hour after birth was lowest in Chad (23.0%) and highest in Burundi (85.0%). The pooled median duration of breastfeeding was 12 months. Female children had 3% significant lower odds of consuming tinned, powdered or fresh milk, compared with male children (OR 0.97; 95% CI 0.94, 0.99). Conversely, female children were more likely to be put to breast within one hour after birth, compared with male children (OR 1.03; 95% CI 1.01, 1.05). Results from the pooled sample showed approximately 20% (HR 0.80; 95% CI 0.67, 0.96) and 21% (HR 0.79; 95% CI 0.77, 0.80) reduction in infant mortality for children breastfed within one hour after birth and for every unit increase in the months of breastfeeding respectively. In addition, countries with the leading infant mortality rate include; Sierra Leone (92 deaths per 1000 live births), Chad (72 deaths per 1000 live births), Nigeria (69 deaths per 1000 live births), Cote d’ Ivoire (68 deaths per 1000 live births), Guinea (67 deaths per 1000 live births), Burkina-Faso (65 deaths per 1000 live births) and Mozambique (64 deaths per 1000 live births) respectively.ConclusionsThe findings from this study underscores the need for early breastfeeding initiation and prolong breastfeeding to be considered in programmes on improving childhood survival. Efforts should be made to improve optimal breastfeeding practices as only about half of children in the pooled sample had best practices of breastfeeding.
Highlights
Breastfeeding practices and their impact on infant health and survival are unquestionably of global interest
Total infant mortality rates were highest in Sierra Leone (92 deaths per 1000 live births), Chad
Our findings have brought to light, the need to give the promotion of early breastfeeding initiation and prolonged breastfeeding a priority with mothers
Summary
Breastfeeding practices and their impact on infant health and survival are unquestionably of global interest. To enable countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to reach the third Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-3) of ending preventable deaths of newborns and children under the age of five, optimal feeding habits for newborns, infants, and children are a must [1]. Infant and child feeding practices have a considerable impact on the state of children’s nutritional and health condition, and are major contributors to child survival. As a result, encouraging newborn and child feeding behaviors is critical for enhancing children’s nutrition, health, and development [2]. The majority of the indicators employed in population surveillance systems to estimate newborn and child feeding behaviors have focused on breastfeeding [2, 3]. The indications show whether or not complementary foods are ingested, but not the quality or quantity of those foods
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