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Occurrence of diarrhoeal diseases in relation to infant feeding practices in a rural community in West Bengal, India
Author(s) -
Mondal SK,
Gupta PG,
Gupta DN,
Ghosh S.,
Sikder SN,
Rajendran K.,
Saha MR,
Sircar BK,
Bhattacharya SK
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
acta pædiatrica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1651-2227
pISSN - 0803-5253
DOI - 10.1111/j.1651-2227.1996.tb18221.x
Subject(s) - breastfeeding , medicine , incidence (geometry) , weaning , breast feeding , pediatrics , diarrhea , demography , prospective cohort study , cohort study , rate ratio , confidence interval , breastfeeding promotion , west bengal , environmental health , population , surgery , socioeconomics , physics , sociology , optics
In a rural community‐based prospective study, diarrhoea in relation to the feeding patterns of a cohort of infants was studied. A total of 148 infants between the ages of 0 and 2 months were enrolled and followed until the completion of 1 year of age. Survival analysis showed that by the fourth month of age exclusive breastfeeding dropped by 75%. The proportion of complementary breastfeeding increased from 18.6 to 52.9% during the same period and to 83.7% by the eighth month. This study clearly highlights the tendency for early switch over from exclusive breastfeeding to complementary breastfeeding. Early weaning was associated with an incidence rate ratio (IRR) of 3.02 (95% CI 1.043–8.802). The IRR of 3.02 and its confidence limits (1.043–8.02) suggest a significant protective effect of exclusive breastfeeding against diarrhoea in infants. The results of this study indicate that promotion of exclusive breastfeeding has a potential role to reduce the incidence of diarrhoea amongst infants. The findings of this study will be useful for Diarrhoeal Disease Control Programme in reducing diarrhoeal morbidity.