Abstract:
Background: Growth faltering is commonly encountered in breastfed infants during 4—6 months of age in low socioeconomic communities. The objective of this study was to describe the changes of growth indices with age, timing
of growth faltering and its association with the feeding practices in children up-to 18 months of age.
Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted in 254 children aged 12 and 18 months attending an
immunization clinic. Data on growth were extracted from the Child Health Development Record. Weight and length
were measured using standard methods. Feeding practices were assessed using interviewer-administered questionnaire. A drop of>0.25 in weight-for-age Standard Deviation Score (SDS) from birth SDS was defned as weight
faltering.
Results: Weight faltering occurred at some point in 64.2% (n=163) during frst 18 months of life, and 78.5% of
whom, had the onset≤4 months of age. Majority (76.6%, n=98) with weight for age faltering by 4 months remained
so at 12 months (p=0.497), while 29.7% (n=38) had a weight-for-length below-2SD (p<0.001). Prevalence of weight
faltering was 50.4%, 46.1%, 48.4% and 48% at 4, 6, 9 and 12 months respectively. Exclusive breastfeeding was given
at least until 4 months in 88% (n=223) and up to 6 months in 60% (n=153) while 92.9% (n=236) were breastfed
at 12 months, with 38.2% (n=97) were breastfed on demand after six months. Complementary feeding (CF) was
started before 6 months in 40.6% (n=52) with early weight faltering, but only 20.3% received it with proper consistency. Breastfeeding throughout the night was signifcantly associated with current weight-for-length being<-1SD
(OR=1.89, CI, 1.04—3.45; p=0.037).
Conclusions: Early growth faltering was found in this population with high exclusive breastfeeding rates and persisting growth faltering was associated with poor feeding practices. Therefore, timely individualized interventions need to
be taken to improve long term growth.
