The rates of timely initiation of breastfeeding were undesirably low, and the practice of prelacteal feeding existed even in tertiary care hospitals. Identifying factors associated with these practices might be a strategy for optimizing timely initiation and discouraging prelacteal feeding in hospital-delivered babies.

Background and aims:The rate of initiation of breastfeeding within an hour of birth (timely initiation) continues to remain low in India and the practice of giving pre-lacteal feed is still prevalent. We determined the rates of timely initiation and pre-lacteal feeds to newborns delivered at urban tertiary hospital.