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Weaning practice in the Glasgow Longitudinal Infant Growth Study
S A Savage1, J J Reilly, C A Edwards
1University Department of Human Nutrition, Yorkhill Hospitals, Glasgow, UK.
Insights
Infant weaning practices in Glasgow show poor compliance with health guidelines, with many babies introduced to solids before four months. Public health messages on infant feeding may not be effectively reaching all parents.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Nutrition Science
Background:
- Infant feeding guidelines recommend specific timings for introducing solid foods to ensure optimal infant development and health.
- Understanding current weaning practices and factors influencing them is crucial for public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate adherence to Department of Health weaning guidelines in Glasgow infants.
- To identify key factors influencing the timing of infant weaning practices.
Main Methods:
- A representative sample of 127 infants in Glasgow was studied using questionnaires administered during home visits.
- Ninety-eight mothers completed follow-up questionnaires regarding their attitudes and information sources related to weaning.
Main Results:
- The median age for introducing solids was 11 weeks, with only 7% of infants weaned after 4 months.
- Younger mothers, lower socioeconomic status, formula feeding, and heavier infant weight correlated with earlier weaning.
- Mothers citing the need for more food as a reason for weaning were common; formal information from health visitors was associated with later weaning.
Conclusions:
- Compliance with recommended weaning ages (not before 4 months), weaning foods, and cow's milk introduction in Glasgow is suboptimal.
- Current public health messages regarding infant weaning may not be effectively reaching the intended audience.
Aims:
To assess compliance with Department of Health guidelines on weaning practice in a representative sample of 127 infants from Glasgow, and to identify factors influencing timing of weaning.
Methods:
Questionnaires on feeding and weaning were completed during home visits. Ninety eight mothers completed a further questionnaire on attitudes to weaning.
Results:
Median age at introduction of solid food was 11 weeks (range 4-35 weeks); only 7% of infants had not been weaned before age 4 months. There was no difference in timing of weaning between boys and girls. Younger mothers (< 20 years old), those of lower socioeconomic status, and those who formula fed their infants tended to introduce solids earlier. Infants who were heaviest before weaning were weaned earlier. Seventy three of 98 mothers reported that they weaned their babies because they felt that they required more food. Sources of information influencing time of weaning were previous experience (53/98), books and leaflets (43/98), advice from the health visitor (31/98), and family and friends (15/98). Sixty five of 98 mothers reported receiving formal information on weaning, in most cases (54) this was from the health visitor. Mothers who received formal information tended to wean their infants later. Two per cent of infants had been given cow's milk as a main drink by age 6 months, 17% by 9 months, and 45% by the end of the first year.
Conclusion:
Compliance with recommendations on timing of weaning (not before 4 months), weaning foods, and cow's milk consumption in Glasgow is poor, although no poorer than in many other areas of the UK as found by Office of Population, Censuses and Surveys. Public health messages in relation to weaning may not be reaching their target audience.