WORLD JOURNAL OF ADVANCE
HEALTHCARE RESEARCH

Bright Ewona*, Vivian Takim, Grace Offiong and Okon Etim

ABSTRACT

The process of nursing babies or young children with milk from their mother?s breast is well known practice as recommended by health professionals for babies from the first hour of their life on earth until as much as they would need it.Breast milk contains vital nutrients and natural antibiotics that are needed for a child?s well-being, growth and development. Even if many mothers adopt this practice, a lot of them, especially the rural dwellers are still not fully aware of the best method of breastfeeding for their babies. In this study the researcher compared the health implication of mother preference to exclusive breastfeeding and mixed feeding among newborns in Isobor. Three research questions were formulated to guide the study. Descriptive survey design was adopted. Structured questionnaire was used to gather Data from 120 respondents who were basically nursing mothers from sample communities.Simple random technique was employed to select the sample for the study. The instrument was validated to ensure that items in the questionnaire represent the subject of interest and was accurate. The test-retest method of reliability was used in ensuring reliability of instrument. Simple percentage was used to analyze data obtained. From the study, children who wereexclusively breastfed displayed sound physical and mental attitudes, good skin texture, brilliant dispositions and strong disease resistance abilityat significant levels compared to those nurtured by mixed feeding. These are some of the reasons why most mothers adopt exclusive breastfeeding method. From the findings it was recommended that nursing mothers should prefer exclusive breastfeeding under normal conditions.