The epidemiology and associated factors of non-exclusive breastfeeding: a comparative cross-sectional study of livelihood-secure and insecure areas

IntroductionRegardless of national commitment, non-exclusive breastfeeding (NEBF) is a public health problem that worsens over time. It can be associated with sociodemographic, economic, and environmental factors and may vary depending on livelihood security. Hence, this study aimed to determine the magnitude of NEBF and identify its associated factors by considering two areas with varied degrees of livelihood security.MethodsThis study represented a comparative cross-sectional survey of 1,060 under 6 months (u6m) infant–mother pairs. Both descriptive and analytic statistics were evaluated using STATA version 17 packages. A binary logistic regression was used to identify associated factors of NEBF. The odds ratio (OR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to measure the significance of the association at a p-value of <0.05.ResultsThe pooled magnitude of 51% of NEBF mothers (95% CI: 48.0, 54.0) was 53.1% (95% CI: 49.2, 57.0) and 48.1% (95% CI: 43.4, 52.8) in livelihood-secure and livelihood-insecure areas, respectively. The lack of recollecting the infant’s birth date by mothers (AOR = 2.4; 95% CI = 1.15–4.40) had the highest odds of NEBF while household heads with tertiary education (AOR = 0.14; 95% CI = 0.01–0.54) and the poorest households (AOR = 0.43; 95%CI = 0.20–0.82) had the lowest odds of NEBF in livelihood-secure areas but not in livelihood-insecure areas. Moreover, mothers with male infants (AOR = 1.9; 95% CI = 1.18–2.92) had high odds of NEBF in livelihood-insecure areas but not in livelihood-secure areas. Infants of 2 to less than 4-month-old (AOR = 8.5; 95% CI = 3.47–18.63) and 4 to less than 6-month-old (AOR = 22.2; 95% CI = 8.02–51.97) in livelihood-secure areas and infants of 2 to less than 4-month-old (AOR = 4.3; 95% CI = 1.29–11.67) and 4 to less than 6-month-old (AOR = 8.3; 95% CI = 2.44–22.39) in livelihood-insecure areas had high odds of NEBF.ConclusionOver half of the mothers were practicing NEBF, which represents a failure to meet national and international targets. Area vulnerability to livelihood security modifies factors of NEBF. Male infants in insecure areas, infants of unknown age in secure areas, and infants aged 2 months or older, regardless of setting, were more vulnerable to NEBF. However, households with the lowest wealth and higher household head educational status in livelihood-secure areas were less vulnerable to NEBF. Hence, livelihood-based interventions targeting mothers of 2 to less than 6-month-old infants, with emphasis on these factors, may help address and reduce NEBF.