Comparison of feeding practices and growth of urbanized African infants aged 6–12 months old by maternal HIV status in Gauteng Province, South Africa

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT : Data are available on request from the corresponding author, due to the University of Pretoria policy on data publication.Appropriate feeding practices are protective against malnutrition and poor growth. We compared feeding practices and growth in HIV-exposed-uninfected (HEU) and HIV-unexposeduninfected (HUU) between 6-12 months of age in urbanized African infants in South Africa. A repeated cross-sectional analysis was used to determine differences in infant feeding practices and anthropometric measures by HIV exposure status at 6, 9, and 12 months in the Siyakhula study. The study included 181 infants (86 HEU; 95 HUU). Breastfeeding rates were lower in HEU vs. HUU infants at 9 (35.6% vs. 57.3%; p = 0.013) and 12 months (24.7% vs. 48.0%; p = 0.005). Introduction to early complementary foods was common (HEU = 16.2 11.0 vs. HUU = 12.8 9.3 weeks; p = 0.118). Lower weight-for-age Z-scores (WAZ) and head circumference-for-age Z-scores (HCZ) were found in HEU infants at birth. At 6 months,WAZ, length-for-age Z-scores (LAZ), HCZ, and mid-upper-arm circumference-for-age Z-scores (MUACAZ) were lower in HEU vs. HUU infants. At 9 months, lowerWAZ, LAZ, and MUACAZ were found in HEU vs. HUU infants. At 12 months, lowerWAZ, MUACAZ, and weight-for-length Z-scores (0.2 1.2 vs. 0.2 1.2; p = 0.020) were observed. HEU infants had lower rates of breastfeeding and poorer growth compared to HUU infants. Maternal HIV exposure affects the feeding practices and growth of infants.The University of Pretoria Department of Research and Innovation UCDP, the National Research Foundation (NRF): new Generation of Academics Program and the Collaborative Initiative for Paediatrics HIV Education and Research (CIPHER) of the International AIDS Society.https://www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrientsam2024Consumer ScienceHuman NutritionPaediatrics and Child HealthStatisticsSDG-02:Zero HungerSDG-03:Good heatlh and well-bein