Maternal work and exclusive breastfeeding practice: a community based cross-sectional study in Efutu Municipal, Ghana

Maternal work has been identified as one of the factors that affect exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months of life. In Ghana, mothers engaged in the formal sector of employment are unable to exclusively breastfeed after maternity leave because facilities at their work places and conditions of work do not support exclusive breastfeeding. Even though maternal work and exclusive breastfeeding does not seem well matched, not all maternal work are incompatible with the practice of exclusive breastfeeding. This study seeks to identify the features of maternal work associated with exclusive breastfeeding in Effutu Municipal in the Central Region of Ghana. To achieve the above aim, I discuss the different types of maternal work, their characteristics, and how the work may influence exclusive breastfeeding.

The study is a community based cross-sectional study involving 225 mother-infant pairs attending community based Child Welfare Clinics in Effutu Municipal, Ghana. Data were collected through face-to-face structured interviews and focus group discussions over a period of five months in 2015. Data on breastfeeding is based on the breastfeeding practice in the 24 h preceding the survey. Chi-square test is used to identify strength of association between the features of maternal work and exclusive breastfeeding practice.

The exclusive breastfeeding rate among mothers with infants between the ages of 0 - 5 months is 72%. The mean and median number of breastfeeds per day is 11 ± 2.7 and 13.5 respectively. A significant difference in exclusive breastfeeding was established between mothers in the formal (16%) and informal (84%) sectors of employment (p = 0.020). The study also established a significant difference in breastfeeding frequency between mothers in the formal (9%) and informal (91%) sectors of employment (p = 0.001). There was also a significant difference in breastfeeding frequency among respondents that go to work with their infant (64%) and those who do not go to work with their infant (36%) (p = 0.000).

Interventions to promote exclusive breastfeeding should include the use of existing family structures, supportive cultural beliefs, and practices and promotion of an infant-friendly work environment.