Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-4rdpn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-04T19:43:56.080Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Mothers' views on feeding infants around the time of weaning

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2007

Ruth B Walker ,
Jennifer A Conn ,
Michael J Davies  and
Vivienne M Moore
Ruth B Walker
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia
Jennifer A Conn
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia
Michael J Davies
Affiliation:
Research Centre for Reproductive Health, Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
Vivienne M Moore*
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia
*
*Corresponding author: Email [email protected]
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Objective

To describe women's views about aspects of infants' diets around the time of weaning, making comparisons with national guidelines.

Design

A survey of women with a 9-month-old child.

Setting

Adelaide, South Australia.

Subjects

Five hundred and five women who joined a longitudinal study during pregnancy.

Results

Sources of information varied, with written material most commonly used (37%). Cows' milk was considered suitable as the main drink for weaned infants by 14% of women. There were divergent views about the suitability of eggs, with many women concerned about allergy. The majority of women (84%) viewed fruit juice as suitable although many qualified their response, often by stating that fruit juice should be diluted. Almost all women considered the amount of sugar mattered, primarily because of tooth decay, and that salt mattered although the reason was often uncertain. It was widely believed (77%) that additives in food could cause health problems, in particular hyperactivity and allergies, and half of the women reported avoiding specific foods because of concerns about allergies. Many women thought that giving their child food that was high in fat would encourage a liking for ‘junk’ food or lead to fatness in adulthood.

Conclusions

There is considerable diversity in the views women express about aspects of infant feeding that have been the subject of guidelines. Further health promotion efforts are needed to achieve greater consistency with recommendations and to address other concerns women have. This will entail greater engagement with parents and shared development of responses.

Keywords

Mothers' viewsInfantsWeaning dietDietary guidelines
Type
Research Article
Information
Public Health Nutrition , Volume 9 , Issue 6 , September 2006 , pp. 707 - 713
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2006

References

1National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). Dietary Guidelines for Adolescents and Children in Australia – Incorporating the Infant Feeding Guidelines for Health Workers. Catalogue No. 0326111. Canberra: NHMRC, 2003.Google Scholar
2British Nutrition Foundation. Nutrition in Infancy. Briefing Paper. London: British Nutrition Foundation, 1997.Google Scholar
3National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). Dietary Guidelines for Australians. Catalogue No. 9218223 Canberra: NHMRC, 1992.Google Scholar
4National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). Dietary Guidelines for Children and Adolescents. Catalogue No. 9557075 Canberra: NHMRC, 1995.Google Scholar
5Child and Youth Health. Annual Report 2002/2003. Adelaide: Government of South Australia, 2003.Google Scholar
6Australian Bureau of Statistics. National Health Survey 2001: Summary of Results. Catalogue No. 4364.0 Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service, 2002.Google Scholar
7Retallack, SJ, Simmer, K, Makrides, M, Gibson, RA. Infant weaning practices in Adelaide: the results of a shopping complex survey. Journal of Paediatric Child Health 1994; 30: 28–32.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8Morgan, JB, Kimber, AC, Redfern, AM, Stordy, BJ. Healthy eating for infants – mother's attitudes. Acta Paediatrica 1995; 84: 512–5.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
9Emmett, P, North, K, Noble, S and the ALSPAC Study Team. Types of drinks consumed by infants at 4 and 8 months of age: a descriptive study. Public Health Nutrition 2000; 3: 211–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10Noble, S, Emmett, P and the ALSPAC Study Team. Food and nutrient intake in a cohort of 8-month-old infants in the South West of England in 1993. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2001; 55: 698–707.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
11Donath, SM, Amir, LH. The introduction of breast milk substitutes and solid foods: evidence from the 1995 National Health Survey. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health 2002; 26: 481–4.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12Popay, J, Williams, G. Public health research and lay knowledge. Social Science & Medicine 1996; 45: 759–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
13Hansen, J, Holm, L, Frewer, L, Robinson, P, Sandoe, P. Beyond the knowledge deficit: recent research into lay and expert attitudes to food risks. Appetite 2003; 41: 111–21.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14Coveney, J. A qualitative study exploring socio-economic differences in parental lay knowledge of food and health: implications for public health nutrition. Public Health Nutrition 2004; 8: 290–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
15Crotty, P. Good Nutrition: Fact, Fashion in Dietary Advice. St Leonards, New South Wales: Allen and Unwin, 1995.Google Scholar
16Moore, VM, Davies, MJ, Willson, KJ, Worsley, A, Robinson, JS. Dietary composition of pregnant women is related to size of the baby at birth. Journal of Nutrition 2004; 134: 1820–6.Google Scholar
17Chan, A, Scott, J, Nguyen, A-M, Keane, R. Pregnancy Outcome in South Australia 1999. Adelaide: Pregnancy Outcome Unit, Epidemiology Branch, Department of Human Services, 2000.Google Scholar
18World Health Organization (WHO). Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. Part 1. Geneva: WHO, 1991.Google Scholar
19Downe-Wambolt, B. Content analysis: method, applications and issues. Health Care for Women International 1992; 13: 313–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
20Australian Bureau of Statistics. Australian Social Trends. Catalogue No. 4102.0. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service, 2000.Google Scholar
21Australian Bureau of Statistics. Income Distribution, Australia. Catalogue No. 6523.0. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service, 1999.Google Scholar
22Child and Youth Health. The Feeding Book (for Babies and Young Children). Adelaide: Child and Youth Health, 2002.Google Scholar
23Lichtenstein, PK, Tsang, RC, Calcium and vitamin D requirements for 6 to 12-month-old infants. In: Heird, WC, ed. Nutritional Needs of the Six to Twelve Month Old Infant Carnation Nutrition Education Series, Vol. 2. New York: Raven Press, 1991; 217–27.Google Scholar
24Beardsworth, A, Keil, T. Sugar and confectionary: sweetness in the human diet. Sociology on the Menu: An Invitation to the Study of Food and Society. London: Routledge, 1997.Google Scholar
25Zeiger, RS. Food allergen avoidance in the prevention of food allergy in infants and children. Pediatrics 2003; 111: 1662–71.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
26Hill, DJ, Hosking, CS, Heine, RG. Clinical spectrum of food allergy in children in Australia and South-East Asia: identification and targets for treatment. Annals of Medicine 1999; 31: 272–81.Google Scholar
27Sicherer, S. Food allergy. Lancet 2002; 360: 701–10.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
28Eigenmann, PA, Haenggeli, CA. Food colourings and preservatives – allergy and hyperactivity. Lancet 2004; 364: 823–4.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed