Are adolescents ready for future responsibilities? Experience from a cross-sectional study regarding Breastfeeding
Simmi Oberoi1, Kamal Kishore2, Sunvir Kaur Rai1
1Department of Community Medicine, Government Medical College, Patiala, Punjab, India.
Background:
Breastfeeding plays an important role in the holistic development of a child. Current knowledge and attitude of future parents will significantly influence breastfeeding practices. Therefore, ascertaining current knowledge and attitude of both soon-to-be parents will help to formulate breastfeeding promotion strategies.
Research Aim:
To ascertain the knowledge and attitude of adolescents towards breastfeeding and its correlates with socioeconomic and demographic factors.
Materials And Methods:
A cross-sectional institutional based study in which participants were recruited from Punjab, state of India. A total of 392 adolescents from January to June 2017 were evaluated on the basis of a pretested, reliable, and valid instrument. The instrument consisted of questions on knowledge and attitude regarding breastfeeding.
Results:
One-hundred two (26%) participants had good knowledge and 290 (74%) had poor knowledge regarding breastfeeding. A bothersome fact is that only 25% of the participants knew about the age till which a child should be breastfed. There was a statistically significant (OR = 2.93; 95% CI: [1.45--5.93]) association between high knowledge and positive attitude.
Conclusion:
The level of knowledge amongst adolescents showed variation ranges from 15.82% to 93.11% on various aspects of breastfeeding. Despite this glaring variation, 75% of the participants had a positive attitude towards breastfeeding. Thus, there is a need for implementing modified and improved breastfeeding promotion strategies in India.
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