Knowledge, attitudes and practices of mothers of children aged 6 to 12 months on breastfeeding in the province of Sissili in Burkina Faso.

Background: Breastfeeding practices during the first 24 months of child lives are crucial for their health, development and survival. However, several factors influence mothers' sensitivity to breastfeeding.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of mothers of children aged 6 to 12 months on colostrum, early breastfeeding and ablactation age.

Methods: It was a cross-sectional study whose population was selected on the basis of a reasoned choice. For this purpose, a questionnaire was administered to 163 mothers of child aged 6 to 12 months, before and after their participation at least 5 healthy infant consultation sessions coupled with culinary demonstrations in public health facilities in the Sissili province of Burkina Faso. Chi-square and Wilcoxon rank tests were used to analyze the associations of variables and difference between the levels of mothers' knowledge at the initial and final assessments, respectively.

Results: Among surveyed mothers, colostrum was considered good for child health by 89.6% and 99.4% of mothers at initial and final assessments respectively. Most mothers (98.2%) gave colostrum and 3 out of 4 them breastfed their children at the first hour after childbirth. Early breastfeeding and colostrum breastfeeding by the mother were associated with their occupations (P < 0.05) and their attitude on the effect of colostrum on infant health (P < 0.05). Awareness significantly increased mother's knowledge on the benefits of colostrum, ablactation age, time and benefits of early breastfeeding (P < 0.05). It also had a positive impact on mother's opinion of the effect of colostrum on infant health.

Conclusion: Mothers' participation in healthy infant consultation sessions combined with culinary demonstrations at health facilities in Sissili province had a positive impact on their knowledge and attitudes on breastfeeding. This could improve their breastfeeding practices in future births.