Avaliação da situação do alimento materno das crianças menores de um ano no município de Itaú de Minas - Minas Gerais

Abstract

This study aimed to value the situation of breastfeeding of children younger than one year old in Itaú de Minas MG local authority. Mothers of 84 resident children younger than one year old were interviewed in the local authority. The data was collected concomitant with the campaign of vaccination against poliomyelitis on September 19th, 2009. A simplified questionnaire (three yes / no questions) was applied to mothers or persons in charge who appeared for vaccination. The local authority has the totality of 208 children younger than one year old, so that concludes a loss of 124 (59,6 %). We obtained the proportion of 63,1 % (53/84) of children who were being breast-fed up to that moment independently of their age. The proportion of those in exclusive breastfeeding from up to 5 months old was 56,6 % (17/30). Concerning the children between 5 and 6 months old, only 30,7 % (4/13) were being breast-fed, period in which consists in weaning and introducing other kinds of food, once it expresses in a bigger intensity. From 7 to 11 months old, among 41 children, 22 (53,6 %) were still being breast-fed. From 12 children who were from 10 to 11 months old, by the time the interviews took place, 41,7 % (5/12) was being breastfed. The necessity of realizing studies with bigger rigidity in the adaptation of the methodology of collection of the data is spotted, mainly as an instrument of collection and adaptation of the amostral loss. But it seems to show that, in the conditions of this research about breastfeeding, the results are satisfactory in this small local authority.