A Preliminary Cross-Sectional Assessment on Exclusive Breastfeeding among Women Attending a Postnatal Clinic at the Holy Family Hospital, Techiman, Ghana

Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for the first six months of life has remained low in Ghana, despite strong evidence of benefits to babies/infants that supports the practice. This study is a preliminary assessment of the adherence to EBF among mothers attending the postnatal clinic. Methods: The study was cross-sectional, involving 85 breastfeeding mothers who attended the postnatal clinic at the Holy Family Hospital, Techiman. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on socio-demographic information and adherence to EBF. A total of 85 mothers and their babies (50 females and 35 males) participated in the study. Out of this total, 45.9% (39/85) were exclusively breastfed, while 54.1% (46/85) were non-exclusively breastfed. About 17.6% of the mothers with Junior High School (JHS) education exclusively breastfed their babies compared to those with Senior High School (SHS) (15.3%) and tertiary (12.9%) (p > 0.05). Babies who were not exclusively breastfed were 12.9% (11/85), 17.6% (15/85), and 23.5% (20/85) for mothers with JHS, SHS, and tertiary education respectively (r = 0.182, p = 0.096). The distribution of weight classification among exclusive and non-exclusively breastfed babies was significantly different (χ2 = 13.583, p 0.001). The findings of this study provide a preliminary assessment of adherence to EBF in Techiman, Ghana. Exclusive breastfeeding practices appear suboptimal. Education and working status of mothers negatively impact adherence on exclusive breastfeeding. Interventions emphasizing the continuous education of mothers could promote exclusive breastfeeding.

Evaluation of Iron Concentration of Five Nigerian Shrubs for their Prospective use in the Therapy of Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA)

Medicinal herbs are commonly being used in the treatment of anemia traditionally and Jatropha tanjorensis Ellis & Saroja, Vernonia amygdalina Delile, Manihot esculenta Crantz, Megaskepasma erythrochlamys Lindau, Solanum macrocarpon L. are local shrubs mostly employed. This study aims to analyze the prospective use of some local shrubs in the therapy of Iron Deficiency Anemia. The proximate composition analysis and the iron content in leaves of the shrubs were determined following the methods of the association of official analytical chemists (A.O.A.C). The results obtained for iron concentration show Jatropha tanjorensis 3.11g/kg, Vernonia amygdalina 1.64g/kg, Manihot esculenta 0.57g/kg, Megaskepasma erythrochlamys 1.23g/kg, and Solanum macrocarpon 2.75g/kg. The range of proximate composition as; protein had Megaskepasma erythrochlamys as the lowest value 3.97% and Vernonia amygdalina as the highest value 50.64%, fat & oil content showed Jatropha tanjorensis with the highest value 1.04% and Megaskepasma erythrochlamys having the lowest value 29.77%, Fiber content showed Vernonia amygdalina has the highest value 1.81% and Solanum macrocarpon has the lowest 12.08%, the carbohydrate content showed Megaskepasma erythrochlamys as the lowest value 2.39% and Manihot esculenta as the highest value 21.02%, and the moisture content showed Manihot esculenta has the lowest value 9.98% and Megaskepasma erythrochlamys has the highest value 83.25%. All five plants have great potential for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia.