Abstract:
Background: Exclusive breastfeeding is defined as feeding infants only breast milk, be it directly from breast or
expressed, except drops or syrups consisting of vitamins, mineral supplements or medicine. Exclusive breastfeeding
is one of the essential actions for infant development and survival. However, the prevalence of exclusive
breastfeeding in Ethiopia has been estimated at 52% which is far less than the World Health Organization (WHO)
recommendations. Moreover, there are inconsistencies among estimates in different districts of the country.
Therefore, this study aimed to assess the prevalence and associated factors of exclusive breastfeeding among
mothers in Gozamin district, northwest Ethiopia.
Methods: Using the simple random sampling technique, seven kebeles (lowest administrative units) were selected
as the primary sampling unit of the district. Sample mother-infant pairs were then selected using the systematic
random sampling technique that involved our moving from house to house in each village. Data were collected
from 506 mother-infant pairs using interviews. Factors associated with exclusive breastfeeding were determined
using logistic regression. The measure of association used was the odds ratio, and statistical tests with p-values of
less than 0.05 were considered as statistically significant.
Results: In this study, the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding among mothers was 74.1% (95% CI 70.80, 79.10). For
government employee mothers, the odds of exclusive breastfeeding were reduced by half compared to housewives
(AOR 0.49, 95% CI 0.26, 0.94). Mothers who did not receive breastfeeding counseling after delivery were 0.43 times less
likely to practice exclusive breastfeeding compared with mothers who received the services (AOR 0.43, 95% CI 0.25, 0.72).
Mothers who gave birth at health institutions were more likely to practice exclusive breastfeeding.
Conclusion: Even though the estimated prevalence is relatively high, more effort to meet WHO recommendations is still
necessary. Therefore, we suggest health institutions encourage hospital birthing and increase breastfeeding counseling
after delivery, and employers needs to give longer maternity leave to improve exclusive breastfeeding practice.
