Postpartum depression and infant feeding practices in a low income urban settlement in Nairobi-Kenya

Abstract

BackgroundPostpartum depression can compromise caregiving activities, including infant feeding practices, resulting in child malnutrition. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of postpartum depression on infant feeding practices and malnutrition among women in an urban low income settlement in Nairobi-Kenya. We conducted a cross-sectional study based in Kariobangi North Health Centre in Nairobi County. The study sample included 200 mother-infant pairs visiting the Maternal and Child Health clinics for infant immunization at 6–14 weeks postpartum. We assessed postpartum depression using the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale. Infant feeding practices were assessed based on World Health Organization infant and young child feeding guidelines. Nutritional status (weight for age) was ascertained using infants’ growth monitoring card (percentiles and z-score). We conducted logistic regression analyses to determine the relative odds of non-exclusive breast feeding and infant underweight among mothers with postpartum depression.ResultsThe prevalence of PPD was 13.0% (95% CI 8.3–17.7%). Taking into account differences in socioeconomic status of depressed and non-depressed mothers, non-depressed mothers had a 6.14 (95% CI 2.45–13.36) times higher odds of practicing exclusive breastfeeding than mothers who were depressed. Mothers with PPD had a 4.40 (95% CI 1.91–11.93) time higher odds of having an underweight infant than mothers without depression.ConclusionsThis study contributes towards filling the knowledge gap regarding the adverse effects of postpartum depression on infant health in sub-Saharan Africa. We recommend more research on PPD using longitudinal designs to establish temporal ordering of these important public health problems and development of community-based interventions to address post-partum depression.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13104-016-2307-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Association of Postpartum Depression and Patterns of Infant Feeding Practices Amongst Postnatal Mothers in a Tertiary Care Hospital, in Central India.

“…1). Regarding the infant feeding practices, the indicators were early initiation of breastfeeding which is found to be 30.0% (12) of the babies were initiated with breastfeeding 1 hour after delivery, 55.0% (22) babies were exclusively breastfed, with no prelacteal feeds given. 72.5% (10) of babies out of 40 were bottle fed.…”

“…Postpartum depression ranges from nonpsychotic depressive episode of mild to moderate severity, beginning in or extending into the first postnatal year (12) . Maternal mental health issues like depression is an increasing public health concern in low-income countries because of its high prevalence and wide-ranging implications for the health of the mother and infant (13) .…”

The Effect of Postpartum Depression on Infant Feeding Practice in Sub-Saharan African Countries: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

“…Finally four articles were used for meta-analysis. Three of the studies employed cross-sectional study designs (25)(26)(27) whereas only one study was prospective cohort (24) with study population of 4153 from included studies. The minimum sample size for the included study was 159 (24) whereas the maximum sample size for the included study was 3494 both studies were from South Africa (25).…”

Exploring adaptations and successful implementation of Traditional Healers as adherence partners for people living with HIV in rural Mozambique: A qualitative assessment

“…[1][2][3][4] People with delayed, disrupted or discontinued ART experience rapid disease progression, develop resistance to ART, and remain more likely to transmit the virus during sexual activity. [5][6][7] Though widespread implementation of "test and treat" in 2016 has improved global ART coverage, [8][9][10] poor adherence and treatment interruptions are common, particularly in resource-limited settings where poorly-functioning health systems (medication stock outs, lack of trained providers), [11][12][13] sociocultural norms and beliefs (HIV stigma, mistrust in health system), 11,12,14−22 economic constraints (food insecurity, lack of transportation), 13,17,22−25 as well as family and individual barriers (HIV knowledge, preference for traditional medicine) 17,18,23,25,26 undermine access and willingness to remain in treatment.…”