Improving young child feeding with processed complementary cereals and behavioural change in urban Kenya

Abstract

In urban Kenya the rates of exclusive breastfeeding are low, and complementary feeding practices result in inadequate intake of energy and nutrients by young children. Although information on appropriate feeding of young children has been widely promoted through the health system for years, and mothers are knowledgeable about recommendations, inadequate feeding practices still result in high rates of malnutrition. Processed cereal blends are used by some urban mothers for infant feeding, and their cost is similar to that of porridges enriched in the home by the addition of milk, margarine, or soya flour. However, little has been done to ensure that these products are nutritionally adequate or to ensure that labelling instructions are appropriate and that they promote exclusive breastfeeding from four to six months of age. Social marketing to low-income families of fortified cereal blends that would address these concerns could be a sustainable means of improving infant-feeding practices.