Abstract
Introduction
Inappropriate feeding practices for infants and young children can lead to malnutrition. It is a public health concern worldwide, including in Cambodia, since it affects child health and the socioeconomic development of countries in the long run. For example, its consequences could increase the risk of childhood morbidity, mortality, and future adult disability. We aimed to describe and determine the minimum acceptable diet (MAD) and its association with sociodemographic and maternal behavioral factors among children aged 6–23 months.
Methods
We analyzed the existing data from the end-line assessment conducted in two Operational Districts of Takeo Province (Kirivong and Koah Andet) in 2019 by World Vision International, Cambodia. The end-line assessment collected data from mothers with children aged 6--23 months via a multistage cluster sampling approach. We used Stata V15 to analyze the data of 665 available participants. Descriptive statistics were used to describe children’s and mothers’ characteristics and to calculate MAD; binary and multivariate logistic regression were applied to assess the main predictors of MAD.
Results
The mean age of the mothers was 29 years (SD = 5.7). Among mothers, 54.9% had at least secondary education, whereas 52.6% reported family members between 5 and 7 in their households. Close to sixty percent (59.5%) of the children aged 6--23 months met the MAD. Almost 63.0% of the children aged 9--23 months received higher MADs than did the children aged 6--8 months. Children who were fed formula milk, received Vit A, were fully vaccinated, and were dewormed with mebendazole had significantly higher MADs (> 60%) (p value < 0.05). Children who were absent from diarrhea in the last 2 weeks had better MADs than did children with recent diarrhea (p value < 0.05). The following factors were independently associated with MAD: mothers aged 30--34 years old (AOR=1.68, 95% CI: 1.00--2.86), having a larger family with ≥ 5 members had a lower MAD (AOR=0.61, 95% CI: 0.43--0.86), and children properly got vaccinated (AOR=2.32, 95% CI: 1.39--3.86).
Conclusion
This study revealed that close to 60% of children aged 6--23 months met the MAD. Three main predictors of MAD were having children with mothers aged 30–34 years, having families with fewer than 5 members in the household, and having children receiving complete vaccination (BCG, DPT1, DPT3, Measles). Therefore, we should encourage mothers to bring their children to have a better complete vaccination since it is the only way to connect mothers to healthcare services and to be exposed to public health facilities.