Determinants of exclusive breastfeeding in Nigeria

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Exclusive breast feeding (EBF) has important protective effects on the survival of infants and decreases risk for many early-life diseases. The purpose of this study was to assess the factors associated with EBF in Nigeria.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data on 658 children less than 6 months of age were obtained from the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) 2003. The 2003 NDHS was a multi-stage cluster sample survey of 7864 households. EBF rates were examined against a set of individual, household and community level variables using a backward stepwise multilevel logistic regression method.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The average EBF rate among infants younger than 6 months of age was 16.4% (95%CI: 12.6%-21.1%) but was only 7.1% in infants in their fifth month of age. After adjusting for potential confounders, multivariate analyses revealed that the odds of EBF were higher in rich (Adjusted Odds Ratios (AOR) = 1.15, CI = 0.28-6.69) and middle level (AOR = 2.45, CI = 1.06-5.68) households than poor households. Increasing infant age was associated with significantly less EBF (AOR = 0.65, 95%CI: 0.51-0.82). Mothers who had four or more antenatal visits were significantly more likely to engage in EBF (AOR = 2.70, 95%CI = 1.04-7.01). Female infants were more likely to be exclusively breastfed than male infants (AOR = 2.13, 95%CI = 1.03-4.39). Mothers who lived in the North Central geopolitical region were significantly more likely to exclusively breastfeed their babies than those mothers who lived in other geopolitical regions.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The EBF rate in Nigeria is low and falls well short of the expected levels needed to achieve a substantial reduction in child mortality. Antenatal care was strongly associated with an increased rate of EBF. Appropriate infant feeding practises are needed if Nigeria is to reach the child survival Millennium Development Goal of reducing infant mortality from about 100 deaths per 1000 live births to a target of 35 deaths per 1000 live births by the year 2015.</p

Intimate partner violence against women in Maputo city, Mozambique

Background There is limited research about IPV against women and associated factors in Sub-Saharan Africa, not least Mozambique. The objective of this study was to examine the occurrence, severity, chronicity and "predictors" of IPV against women in Maputo City (Mozambique). Methods Data were collected during a 12 month-period (consecutive cases, with each woman seen only once) from 1,442 women aged 15--49 years old seeking help for abuse by an intimate partner at the Forensic Services at the Maputo Central Hospital, Maputo City, Mozambique. Interviews were conducted by trained female interviewers, and data collected included demographics and lifestyle variables, violence (using the previously validated Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2), and control (using the Controlling Behaviour Scale Revised (CBS-R). The data were analysed using bivariate and multivariate methods. Results The overall experienced IPV during the past 12 months across severity (one or more types, minor and severe) was 70.2% (chronicity, 85.8 +/- 120.9).a Severe IPV varied between 26.3-45.9% and chronicity between 3.1 +/- 9.1-12.8 +/- 26.9, depending on IPV type. Severity and chronicity figures were higher in psychological aggression than in the other IPV types. Further, 26.8% (chronicity, 55.3 +/- 117.6) of women experienced all IPV types across severity. The experience of other composite IPV types across severity (4 combinations of 3 types of IPV) varied between 27.1-42.6% and chronicity between 35.7 +/- 80.3-64.9 +/- 110.9, depending on the type of combination. The combination psychological aggression, physical assault and sexual coercion had the highest figures compared with the other combinations.. The multiple regressions showed that controlling behaviours, own perpetration and co-occurring victimization were more important in "explaining" the experience of IPV than other variables (e.g. abuse as a child). Conclusions In our study, controlling behaviours over/by partner, own perpetration, co-occurring victimization and childhood abuse were more important factors in "explaining" sustained IPV. More investigation into women's IPV exposure and its "predictors" is warranted in Sub-Saharan Africa, particularly Mozambique