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  • Title: A retrospective study of factors affecting breast feeding practices in a rural community of Saudi Arabia.
    Author: al-Nasser AN, Bamgboye EA, Alburno MK.
    Journal: East Afr Med J; 1991 Mar; 68(3):174-80. PubMed ID: 2070752.
    Abstract:
    This study was conducted during 1987-1988 academic year in the rural areas of Tihama Saudi Arabia to assess the average duration of breast feeding and the effect of some factors. A multi-way analysis of variance approach was used to examine the effect of mother's age, parity and education on the duration of breast feeding. The mean duration of breast feeding was 11.2 months +/- and the results of the regression analysis shows all the three maternal variables, age, parity and education to have statistically significant independent effect on the duration of breast feeding. The results showed that 98.3% support breast feeding and 78.9% of the sample were illiterates. These findings are discussed in relation to previous work. During 1987-1988, paramedical personnel interviewed 923 women who have attend the primary health care center in the Tiahama Valleys in mountainous southwestern Saudi Arabia to learn how long women breast feed and what factors affect its duration. 78.9% of the women were illiterate as compared to 50% for the total rural population of mothers in Saudi Arabia. 90% had 1 child. 98.35% believed in the importance of breast feeding, yet only 50.7% breast fed their infants. 47.3% mixed fed and 2% bottle fed their infants. 35% began solid foods (cereals, rice, eggs, and vegetables) when the child was 6 months old. Age of the mother had a statistically significant positive effect on the duration of breast feeding (p.05). Indeed mothers 25 years old were more likely to breast feed for 6 months than their older counterparts. Nevertheless these women did have an average duration of breast feeding of 9.3 months whereas the older mothers breast fed an average of 11 months. Parity also significantly affected duration of breast feeding in a positive manner (p.01). For example, 33% of grand multiparous mothers did not breast feed for 6 months compared to 66% of the primigravidas. Education had a significant negative effect (p.01). In fact, 68% of mothers with university level education breast fed for 6 months or less. The average duration of breast feeding stood at 11.2 months (median, 10 months; mode, 12 months) while the average of all rural areas in Saudi Arabia in 1988 stood at 14.2 months. Completion of weaning occurred on average at 11.7 months. Mothers who only bottle fed did so for an average of 11.4 months. These results indicate a need for health care teams to promote breast feeding in this area.
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