The effect of family-oriented educational-supportive programs on adequacy of exclusive breastfeeding from the perspective of mothers

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Exclusive breastfeeding for the term infant during the first six months of life fulfills all infant's needs, enhances the immune system, defends the infant against the number and intensity of infections and enhances the development of cognitive systems, social development and intellectual development of children. One reason for early cessation of breastfeeding is that mothers think their milk is inadequate for their infant. Therefore, the present study was conducted to enhance the adequacy of exclusive breastfeeding from the perspective of mothers using family-oriented educational-supportive programs. METHODS: In this randomized clinical trial, 70 pregnant women over 18 years old were selected with the following characteristics: first pregnancy, singleton, low risk and gestational age of 32 to 36 weeks. Mothers were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. Mothers in intervention group participated in 2 family-oriented educational sessions during pregnancy and participated in 1 family-oriented consultation session during the first week after delivery. Mothers in control group only benefited from routine educations. The adequacy of breastfeeding from the perspective of mothers and exclusive breastfeeding were assessed and recorded for both groups using a researcher-made questionnaire with a total score of 14-70 (IRCT2015081723657N1). FINDINGS: During the first two weeks after delivery, the mean score of breastfeeding adequacy from mother’s perspective in the intervention group (64.88±4.78) was significantly higher than the control group (56.57±6.91) (P= 0.000). In addition, the difference was still significant during the first two months after delivery (67.33±3.58 and 57.20±7.94 for intervention and control groups, respectively, p=0.000). Moreover, the level of exclusive breastfeeding at the end of the second week (p=0.003) and the second month (p=0.01) revealed a significant difference between intervention and control groups. CONCLUSION: The results of this study demonstrated that family-oriented educations and consultations during pregnancy and after delivery significantly enhances breastfeeding adequacy from the perspective of mothers and exclusive breastfeeding. © 2017, Babol University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved.