Perception of Rural Mothers towards Exclusive Breastfeeding during the COVID-19 Pandemic | ||||
Mansoura Nursing Journal | ||||
Volume 10, Issue 2, July 2023, Page 377-381 PDF (484.71 K) | ||||
Document Type: Original Article | ||||
DOI: 10.21608/mnj.2023.340518 | ||||
View on SCiNiTO | ||||
Authors | ||||
Noura El-Gamel 1; Amina El-Nemer2 | ||||
1Demonstrator of Woman's Health and Midwifery Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Mansoura University, Egypt | ||||
2Professor of Woman's Health and Midwifery Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Mansoura University, Egypt | ||||
Abstract | ||||
Background: Infants should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life to obtain the nutritional and immunological advantages of breast milk. Aim: The study aimed to assess the perception of rural mothers towards exclusive breastfeeding during COVID-19 pandemic. Method: A descriptive study design was used on 178 rural mothers. Setting: The study was conducted at rural primary health care center in Damietta, Egypt. Tool of data collection: A Structured interview questionnaire was used for gathering the data. Results: Nearly half (46.6%) of rural mothers perceived pre-lacteal feed to be important for infants. Also, half of them believed that breast milk alone isn’t enough for ≥6 months infant so baby can’t survive without water in the 1st 6 months of life. While 46.1% of them thought that lactation should be discontinued if taking any type of medication. The majority of them believed that breast milk protects infants against COVID-19 virus while 70.8% of them stated that COVID suspected or positive mothers shouldn’t stop breastfeeding. Conclusion and Recommendations: The study concluded that however 61.8% of rural women had adequate perception towards exclusive breastfeeding, others had inadequate perception and myths of exclusive breastfeeding. Developing educational programs for optimal behaviors and correct prevalent myths to improve breastfeeding practices are recommended. | ||||
Keywords | ||||
Attitude; COVID-19; Exclusive breastfeeding; Perception; Rural mothers | ||||
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