Knowledge and Attitudes toward Exclusive Breastfeeding among Mothers in Sabon Gari, Zaria – Kaduna State

Abstract

This study investigated the Knowledge and Attitudes toward Exclusive Breastfeeding among
Mothers in Sabon Gari, Zaria – Kaduna State. The research focused on the knowledge and
attitude of mothers towards breastfeeding. In this study, a descriptive cross-section design
was adopted with one hundred and seventy-five (175) nursing mothers as the sample size for
the study based on single population proportion formula using a systematic random selection
process. A structured interviewer-delivered questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.81
was used in data collection for the study. The analytical tools used were descriptive statistics,
which included the frequency distribution, percentage distribution, and tables for categorical
variables. The results indicated that mothers who are well-versed (have good knowledge) in
the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding constitute the vast majority and also have a good
attitude towards breast feeding their child. The researcher concludes that even though
breastfeeding is common in the study area, the respondents to this study had a high level of
knowledge about exclusive breastfeeding and expressed both positive and negative attitudes
toward breastfeeding, with the positive side receiving a higher percentage of responses