• Richard B Kajjura, Frederick J Veldman, and Susanna M Kassier.
• 1 School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda.
• Food Nutr Bull. 2019 Jun 1; 40 (2): 221-230.

BackgroundInappropriate infant and young child complementary feeding practices related to a lack of maternal knowledge contributes to an increased risk of malnutrition, morbidity, and mortality. There is a lack of data regarding the effect of nutrition education on maternal knowledge, feeding, and hygiene practices as part of a supplementary feeding intervention targeting infants and young children with moderate acute malnutrition in low-income countries like Uganda.ObjectiveTo determine whether nutrition education improves knowledge, feeding, and hygiene practices of mothers with infants and young children diagnosed with moderate acute malnutrition.MethodsA cross-sequential study using a pretest-posttest design included 204 mother-infant pairs conveniently sampled across 24 randomly selected clusters. Weekly nutrition education sessions were embedded in a supplementary porridge intervention for 3 months. Mean scores and proportions for knowledge, feeding, and hygiene practices were determined at baseline and end line. The difference between mean scores at the 2 time points were calculated with the paired t test analysis, while the proportions between baseline and end line were calculated using a z test analysis.ResultsMean scores for knowledge, dietary diversity, and meal frequency were higher at end line compared to baseline (P < .001). Handwashing did not improve significantly (P = .183), while boiling water to enhance water quality improved (P < .001).ConclusionNutrition education in conjunction with a supplementary feeding intervention targeting infants and young children with moderate acute malnutrition improved meal frequency, dietary diversity and water quality.

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