Author(s)

Folake O. Samuel^*, Boluwatife Akintayo, Toluwalope E. Eyinla

Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.

Malnutrition among under-5 children has been linked to inadequate complementary feeding practices. Children living without permanent parents have also been proven to have a higher risk of malnutrition, which puts their growth and development in danger. In this study, an impact evaluation of nutrition education was carried out on the knowledge and practice of complementary feeding among caregivers in orphanages. This quasi-experimental study was conducted in selected orphanage homes located within Ibadan, southwestern Nigeria. A purposive sampling technique was employed to select 50 caregivers from 8 orphanage homes. Data was collected using an adapted interviewer administered at baseline and post-intervention. The key results showed that those who had good knowledge of complementary feeding practices increased from 68.1% to 79.9% at baseline and post-intervention respectively. The WHO complementary feeding indicators that were used to measure the practice revealed that 37.5% met the minimum meal frequency (MMF), 52.5% met the minimum dietary diversity (MDD) and 35% met the minimum adequate diet (MAD) at baseline, which increased to 62.5%, 80% and 60% respectively after intervention. Conclusively, this study revealed that nutrition education improved the complementary feeding knowledge and practice of caregivers. It is recommended that such nutrition education should be introduced to new caregivers and could also be converted into policy actions at a national level.

Nutrition Education, Caregivers, Orphanages, Complementary Feeding

Samuel, F. , Akintayo, B. and Eyinla, T. (2021) Complementary Feeding Knowledge and Practices of Caregivers in Orphanages Improved after Nutrition Education Intervention in Ibadan, Nigeria. Open Journal of Nursing, 11, 642-652. doi: 10.4236/ojn.2021.117054.