Motivating and Hindering Factors Affecting Muslim Mothers' Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) Practices in Select Municipalities of Maguindanao, BARMM, Philippines.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the motivating and hindering factors affecting the Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices of Muslim mothers in select municipalities of Maguindanao.

Methods: A pretested questionnaire was administered through face-to-face interviews conducted among 320 randomly selected Muslim mothers with a child aged 6-23 months.

Results: Results revealed that prelacteal feeding was practiced by 16.6% of the Muslim mothers, giving mostly plain water. Solid/semi-solid foods were introduced at a mean age of 6.1 ± 1.4 months, with home-cooked lugao (porridge) (55.0%) and commercial baby food (31.3%) as the top foods introduced. The majority of Muslim mothers (82.5%) fed processed foods as complementary food to their children, including instant noodles (85.2%) and canned goods (51.5%). These processed foods were mostly obtained from sari-sari stores, with TV as the top source of information. More than 80% of the Muslim mothers cited food availability, economic reasons, and convenience in food preparation as the top three motivating factors in the practice of complementary feeding (CF). In addition, almost all the Muslim mothers (~97%) mentioned seeing their children grow healthy as the top reason for improving their food preparation practices, followed by positive feedback from their families. Meanwhile, household duties, low milk output, and a new pregnancy make it difficult to continue breastfeeding, while high complementary food costs, a limited budget, and a lack of food make it difficult to provide complementary food. The preparation of food for infants and young children is hindered by an increased workload and a lack of understanding.

Conclusion: The results revealed suboptimal practices in prelacteal feeding and the reliance on processed foods among Muslim mothers, with economic factors, availability, and convenience as motivating factors in complementary feeding practices. Challenges such as household duties, low milk output, and financial constraints hinder breastfeeding and nutritious food provision for infants and young children. The study reinforced the necessity for holistic strategies in IYCF promotion among Muslim mothers.