Traditional practices and beliefs regarding nutrition of children in the 0-5 age group in western Turkey: A qualitative study

Objective: To determine mothers knowledge about infant nutrition and traditional influence on feeding practices which may affect the nutritional status of infants and young children. Methods: The qualitive research was carried out from May to June 2009 at a community health centre in Western Turkey, and comprised 20 mothers. Observation and semi-structured in-depth interviews were used for collecting data, which was later classified into four categories: procedures affecting mothers breastfeeding decision; knowledge and beliefs regarding breastmilk; breastfeeding practices; and mothers knowledge of and attitudes towards complementary nutritients/foods. The data was evaluated by theme analysis method. Even if a mother expressed an opinion other than the main theme, her views were taken into consideration. Results: The participating mothers had a mean age of 27.15±7.10 years (range: 18-40 years). Of the 20 participants, 8 (40%) had primary eduaton; 10 (50%) were housewives; 13 (65%) had 1-2 children; and 6 (30%) had children 25 to 36 months old. Women generally had traditional beliefs related to breastfeeding practices and all of the infants were being breastfed. But the mother s anxiety about the sufficiency of breastmilk and social pressure led them to introduce complementary nutritients/foods early. Conclusion: Before preparing community-based programmes to improve infant nutrition, the opinions, beliefs and needs of the mothers should be taken into account.