Knowledge,attitude, and practices of complementary feeding by mothers in the Bayanijuan Southville 7 Resettlement Village in Calauan, Laguna, Philippines

Complimentary feeding refers to the stage when the breast milk produced by the mother is no longer sufficient to meet the nutritional requirements of infants thereby prompting the need for nutritional supplements. The study assessed the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) on complementary feeding of mothers and the nutritional status of their 6 to 24-month old children at Bayanijuan sa Southville 7 in Calauan, Laguna [Philippines]. Data were gathered through interviews with 114 randomly selected mothers. A 24-hour food recall was administered to describe the dietary intake of children. The median energy and nutrient intake were calculated including percent adequacy of food intake. Results revealed that 14% of the children were underweight, 28.1% were stunted, and 12.3% were wasted; whereas 16.7% of the mothers were underweight, 13.2% overweight, and 4.4% obese. Such findings indicate that malnutrition is prevalent among children and mothers in the selected site. More than half of the mothers (66.7%) had high level of knowledge on complementary feeding. The percentage adequacy of intake for iron (26.4%), vitamin A (14.1%) and vitamin C (25.5%) among the 6 to 11 group were found to be low. The highest iron intake was recorded among 12 to 24 months old children (71.2%). The energy intake provided 70% of the recommended amount. The actual energy and nutrient intake of children were far from the recommended amount. About 45% of the children were given complementary foods before six months of age, falling short of the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation, which is at six months. Age and education were found to be associated with the mother's knowledge and attitude on complementary feeding. Marital status, mother's education, and household size were associated with the nutritional status of children. Findings of this study revealed that malnutrition problem among children and mothers exist in the relocation site and therefore residents of the relocation site Bayanijuan sa Southville 7 in Calauan, Laguna are nutritionally at risk.