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. 2023 Oct 26;10(11):1740.
doi: 10.3390/children10111740.

Professional Feeding Guidance Improved Infants' Self-Feeding Proportion during Complementary Foods Introduction in Beijing, China: An Exploratory Study

Guochao Song  1   2 , Jiahui Chang  2   3 , Hongyan Guan  2   4 , Yanfeng Zhang  5 , Ting Zhang  1   2   3 , Zhaofeng Zhang  6   7
Affiliations

Professional Feeding Guidance Improved Infants' Self-Feeding Proportion during Complementary Foods Introduction in Beijing, China: An Exploratory Study

Guochao Song et al. Children (Basel). .

Abstract

An exploratory study was undertaken to examine the prevalence of infants' feeding patterns in Beijing, China, as well as the factors linked to infants' self-feeding proportion during the introduction of complementary foods, and the impact of professional feeding guidance on this proportion. A total of 122 families with infants aged 6-11 months from Beijing were included in the study. A descriptive analysis was employed to assess the prevalence of infants' feeding patterns, while generalized linear model analysis was utilized to investigate the factors associated with these patterns. All families were provided with comprehensive and personalized professional guidance regarding the introduction of complementary foods for infants. However, 64 families were lost to follow-up, leaving 58 families who were re-evaluated and queried after one month. To exclude the influence of infants aging, both the 64 families prior to receiving feeding guidance, and the 58 families after receiving feeding guidance, were included in the analysis. The families with infants aged 6-8 months and 9-11 months were compared separately based on the presence or absence of feeding guidance. Statistical tests, including the Wilcoxon rank-sum test and χ2 test, were conducted to assess any significant differences. The study revealed that the proportion of infants engaging in self-feeding was found to be remarkably low (10% [0%, 40%]). Furthermore, a significant positive association was observed between the proportion of infants engaging in self-feeding and their age (p < 0.001). Notably, after receiving professional feeding guidance, the proportion of infants engaging in self-feeding significantly increased (from 1% [0%, 20%] to 30% [10%, 50%], p < 0.001 for infants aged 6-8 months; from 20% [10%, 50%] to 40% [30%, 50%], p < 0.001 for infants aged 9-11 months). These findings contribute valuable insights for improving postnatal care practices during the introduction of complementary foods for infants.

Keywords: complementary foods; feeding guidance; feeding patterns; infants; self-feeding.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow chart of the study. Abbreviations: WAZ, weight-for-sex/age z-score; LAZ, length-for-sex/age z-score; BMIZ, BMI-for-sex/age z-score; WFLZ, weight-for-length for sex z-score; FAS, Family Affluence Scale; AIMS, Albert Infant Motor Scale; AIMS-P, Albert Infant Motor Scale for age percentile ranks.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The infant ate solid foods on a small transparent table in front with a long sitting or ring sitting.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The comparison of proportion of infants’ self-feeding of 58 families between before and one month after professional feeding guidance.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The comparison of infants’ self-feeding proportion between families which did not accept the feeding guidance and received feeding guidance.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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