Complementary feeding practices, Dietary diversity and the determinant factors of under-two years children in Jimma Geneti District, Oromia, Western Ethiopia

Abstract

Complementary feeding is the vulnerable period of transition from exclusive breastfeeding to a family diet. Children should start receiving adequate, safe, and appropriate complementary foods at six months and continue to be breastfed until they are two years old. Adequate nutrition during childhood is critical for growth, development, and long-term health into adulthood. This study was therefore aimed to assess the complementary feeding practice, dietary diversity and the associated factors among children under two years. The cross sectional study design was used to get the primary data. Systematic random sampling was used to select the respondents from the randomly selected sites. Primary data were collected Through structured and sem structured questionnaires as well as the Focus Group Discussions from March, 2022 through April 2022. A total of 384 household wives were involved in this study. Out of 384 predetermined respondents, a total of 379 respondents participated in the study with a response rate of 98.7%. The study found that more than half of the respondents (51.2%) had good practises and knowledge in complementary feeding of children, while nearly half (48.8%) had poor practises and knowledge in feeding complementary foods. In this study, the minimum dietary diversity was 35.89%. The mothers' complementary feeding practices were significantly influenced by household income level [AOR= 0.28 and 95% CI 0.042, 0.88], mother age [AOR= 0.59 and 95% CI 0.264, 4.18], and mother occupation [AOR= 2.15 and 95% CI 3.19, 12.81]. Similarly, household income level [AOR=0.92 and 95%CI 1.01, 10.12], Age of the child [AOR= 0.15 and 95% CI 2.08, 5.22], Educational level of mothers [AOR=-0.05 and 95% CI 0.112, 6.25], and Birth order of the child [AOR =3.34 and 95% CI 2.08, 12.21] had a significant relationship with the dietary diversity of the children. The overall findings indicated that mothers’ feeding practices toward complementary foods and the dietary diversity of children under two years are very poor. Therefore, all possible interventions should be applied by all the concerned bodies to improve mothers’ complementary feeding practices and dietary diversity of the children in the study area.