Background The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of different infant feeding habits on the occurrence of malnutrition, Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia and anaemia in children ≤ 5 years in the Mount Cameroon area. Methodology A total of 1227 children ≤5 years of age were recruited in a descriptive cross-sectional study. Socio demographic data and information on the different infant feeding habits was obtained by the use of semi-structured questionnaire. Nutritional status was assessed by the use of anthropometric measurements. Plasmodium was detected by light microscopy and haemoglobin was measured by use of an auto-haematology analyser. Anaemia as well as its severity was classified based on WHO standards. The associations between variables were assessed using logistic regression analysis. Results The prevalence of exclusive breast feeding (EBF) was 22.6%, mixed feeding (MF) was 60.1% and those not breastfed (NBF) at all was 17.3%. The prevalence of malnutrition, P . falciparum parasitaemia and anaemia was 32.6%, 30.4% and 77.3% respectively. Children who had EBF had significantly lower (P <0.001) prevalence of malaria parasite (16.2%) than those NBF at all (61.3%). The prevalence of anaemia was significantly higher (P <0.001) in children who had MF (80.5%) while, severe and moderate anaemia was highest in those NBF at all (6.6%, 67.1% respectively; P = 0.029) than their counterparts. The significant predictors of anaemia were age group (P <0.001), marital status (P <0.001) and educational level of parent (P <0.001), that for malaria parasitaemia was infant feeding habit (MF: P< 0.001 and NBF: P <0.001) and malnutrition was age group (≤2 years: P <0.008 and 2.1–4.0 years: P = 0.028). Conclusion The infant feeding habit significantly influenced the occurrence of malaria parasite infection and not malnutrition and anaemia, hence EBF should be encouraged in malaria endemic zones.

Background: Armed conflict is a significant social determinant of child health with nuanced effects. There is a dearth of knowledge on the public health issues facing vulnerable populations in conflict-stricken areas. The objective was to determine the prevalence and determinants of moderate to severe anaemia (MdSA) and severe stunting (SS) in children ≤3 years in conflict-hit Dibanda, Ekona and Muea in the Mount Cameroon area. Methods: Haematological parameters were obtained using an automated haematology analyser while undernutrition indices standard deviation (SD) scores (z-scores), were computed based on the WHO growth reference curves for 649 children in a community based cross-sectional study in 2018. Binomial logistic regression models were used to evaluate the determinants of MdSA and SS against a set of predictor variables. Results: Anaemia was prevalent in 84.0% (545) of the children with a majority having microcytic anaemia (59.3%). The prevalence of MdSA was 56.1% (364). Educational level of parents/caregiver (P < 0.001) and site (P = 0.043) had a significant negative effect on the occurrence of MdSA. Stunting, underweight and wasting occurred in 31.3, 13.1 and 6.3% of the children, respectively. Overall, SS was prevalent in 17.1% (111) of the children. The age groups (0.1-1.0 year, P = 0.042 and 1.1-2.0 years, P = 0.008), educational levels (no formal education, P < 0.001 and primary education P = 0.028) and SS (P = 0.035) were significant determinants of MdSA while MdSA (P = 0.035) was the only significant determinant of SS. On the contrary, age group 0.1-1 year (OR = 0.56, P = 0.043) and site (Dibanda, OR = 0.29, P = 0.001) demonstrated a significant protective effect against SS. Conclusions: Moderate to severe anaemia, severe stunting and wasting especially in children not breastfed at all are public health challenges in the conflict-hit area. There is a need for targeted intervention to control anaemia as well as increased awareness of exclusive breast feeding in conflict-hit areas to limit the burden of wasting and stunting.

Aims: Malnutrition remains an issue of public health concern in Cameroon. Optimal infant feeding habits and maternal risk factors influence the prevalence of malnutrition. This work aimed to evaluate the influence of feeding habits and risk factors on the nutritional status of infants in Kumba hospitals. Study design: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out for a period of 3 months at the Maternal and Child Protection (PMI) and Kumba District hospitals. Methodology: The age of the children were recorded from their immunization cards. The measurements of length and weight of children were recorded. Questionnaires were administered through simple random sampling to care givers of 227 infants at the welfare clinics from which information on feeding habits, anthropometric parameters and socio-demographic status was obtained. The Z-score classifications for malnutrition was used to estimate the deterioration in weight and height of children in reference to the children of same age and sex. Results: There was a low prevalence (14%) of exclusive breast feeding. A high prevalence of early initiation of breast feeding within the first hour of birth at 85% was observed. Early introduction to energy dense complementary food at 67.2% was observed in infants between 0-5 months accounting for the high prevalence of overweight, and possible risk obesity. Furthermore, it was found that 17% of children were stunted, 14.60% were wasted, and 11.70% were underweight. Among them, stunting was highest in children 0-3 months who were on breast milk. Moreover, a significant relationship was observed between marital status and stunting (P<0.05), and underweight and unemployment (P<0.05). Conclusion: This study revealed that exclusive breast feeding from 0 to 6 months was poorly practiced. Thus leading to a high prevalence of wasting, overweight and obesity among admitted children in Kumba hospitals. This was also found to be linked to malnutrition, marital and professional status.