Evaluation of the effect of training given to mothers on complementary feeding on their knowledge and practices

Introduction and objective: The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends breastfeeding exclusively for the first six months, and starting appropriate complementary foods after the 6th month, and continuing breastfeeding until the age of two. Many mothers in our country start complementary foods for their babies before the 6th month. The first two years of life are regarded as a critical window for optimal growth and development. When complementary foods are not given properly and in a balanced way, they form the basis for many diseases such as obesity and diabetes later in life. It has been shown that the frequency of diseases such as pneumonia and diarrhea increases in babies who are initiated early nutritional supplements. It is very important for mothers to start complementary nutrition in a timely and appropriate manner for the life-long health of children. For this reason, it is necessary to determine the knowledge and practices of mothers about starting complementary foods, and to reveal the deficiencies and errors, if any. The aim of this study is to reveal the knowledge and practices of mothers with 0-6 month-old babies followed up in DEU Family Medicine Centers (FMC) about starting complementary nutritions. In addition, we aimed to see the curative effect of the educational intervention on complementary nutrition given to mothers on the growth of babies. Materials and Methods: Our study, which was conducted in DEU Education Family Medicine Centers (FMC), is of the prospective intervention type. Mothers with children aged 0-6 months who were in DEU Education Family Medicine Centers (FMC) for various reasons and who agreed to participate in the study were included in the study. The mothers of the children were informed before the intervention and the questionnaire, and a written informed consent form was obtained. Of the mothers with 0-6 month-old babies who met the inclusion criteria, 60 participants in the intervention group and 60 participants in the control group were included in the study. We applied the complementary nutrition education intervention, which was prepared in the form of a powerpoint presentation, to the mothers in the intervention group, based on WHO recommendations and expert opinion, face-to-face on a tablet. Then, we applied a face-to-face questionnaire to the mothers in both groups, which was created in the light of sociodemographic data and literature, including questions to determine the mothers' knowledge and practices about starting solid food. The mothers in both groups were given the Ministry of Health brochures on supplementary food. We completed the height and weight measurement of each child in their 6th and 12th months. The study was completed with 47 participants in the intervention group and 44 participants in the control group. The data obtained from the research were analyzed in SPSS Statistics 25 program. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Total knowledge and attitude scores were calculated by giving one point each for the correct answers given by the participants to the judgment sentences. As a result of the comparison of the total knowledge score of the participants with the intervention and control groups, there was no statistically significant difference in the mean scores between the two groups. Accordingly, there is no significant change in the knowledge score between the two groups. In our study, no relationship was found between the knowledge score at birth, 6th and 12th months, and height and weight in the control group. In the intervention group, a statistically significant relationship was found between weight at 6th month, height at 12th month and total knowledge score. Accordingly, complementary feeding intervention effectiveness study may improve anthropometric measurements in infants. Discussion and conclusion: Effective education methods to be given to families during the transition to complementary feeding may increase the knowledge level of mothers and improve the anthropometric values of children. More work is needed on this subject.