A Survey Assessing Views on Recommendations for Infant and Young Child Feeding Among Mothers Living in North‐central Tanzania

For a variety of reasons, reports show that low‐resource countries with heavy disease burdens do not follow international recommendations for infant and young child feeding (IYCF), including exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months. The objective of a survey conducted in Mbulu District of Tanzania was to assess the opinions of mothers with regard to the IYCF recommendations. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results show inconsistencies in responses on 75% of the questions. There is agreement, however, on the importance of 1) breastfeeding within the first hour after birth (>90% agree), 2) breastfeeding at three months (>80% agree), and 3) the value of fruits and vegetables in infant diets by 6 months (>85% agree). Results highlight the some mismatch between maternal knowledge and opinions and recommended practices. Understanding how women negotiate between local norms and expectations and biomedical knowledge is necessary to develop effective interventions promoting breastfeeding and complementary feeding practices aimed at improving family health and well‐being. Funded by: University of Illinois at Chicago, Department of Anthropology