Abstract:
This study sought to understand the influence of knowledge, attitude, and perceptions towards infant breastfeeding and weaning among teenage mothers of Mathare informal settlements, Nairobi. The study sought to: establish the weaning/breastfeeding knowledge among the teenage mothers in Mathare informal settlements, examine the weaning/breastfeeding attitude of teenage mothers in Mathare informal settlements; and establish if weaning/breastfeeding perception influences the teenage mothers’ behavioral intentions through their lived experiences. The study used a descriptive research design using a qualitative research approach to conduct interviews with teenage mothers from Mathare informal settlement area in Nairobi County of Kenya. Teenage mothers from Mathare slums captured images of foods they gave their babies and discussed the images alongside other questions during six one-hour FGDs of 6-8 participants each. Data was analyzed using NVIVO version 12 for emergent themes. Findings show that mothers know the duration they should breastfeed optimally, the cautionary issues a mother should consider while breastfeeding and what type of foods to wean their babies with. They get this knowledge from senior significant females in their families and community. Teen mothers also have both favorable and unfavorable attitudes towards breastfeeding and weaning. There are overbearing cultural perceptions that influence the mothers' actual intentions to breastfeed and wean. There is a need to bridge the knowledge gap on proper breastfeeding and weaning practices. Behavior change campaigns should also influence mothers’ attitudes towards optimal breastfeeding and weaning. Consequently, further studies need to be conducted on contextual knowledge that pre-exists based on different communities in Kenya and in the Mathare context. Further a deeper outlook into the lived experiences of mothers and individual interviews on mothers’ breastfeeding and weaning journey to establish some personal factors that may influence the adoption of breastfeeding and weaning.
