Breastfeeding Knowledge and Readiness during COVID-19 Outbreak

Abstract

The disastrous Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic had a significant impact on society and raised many health issues, including the safety of breastfeeding for infants and mothers. Breastfeeding practices, a crucial aspect of infant care, were greatly at risk due to concerns of disease transmission. A strong intention and adequate knowledge on the risks and benefits of breastfeeding were important factors for women to breastfeed during this period. There is a need to identify the knowledge and intention that mothers have about breastfeeding to help promote it. This study evaluated the level of knowledge and intention to breastfeed and determined the factors associated with knowledge and intention to breastfeed during the COVID-19 pandemic among postnatal mothers. A cross-sectional study was conducted using online, self-administered, validated questionnaires on 290 Malaysian women. Respondents were International Islamic University Malaysia Kuantan staff and visitors who gave birth between June 2021 and June 2022, identified through a convenient sampling method. The knowledge questionnaire consisted of 19 subjects pertaining to the general knowledge of breastfeeding, general measures on the prevention of infection from mother to child, and knowledge of the risk of transmission through breast milk. The intention questionnaire consisted of 17 items with three subdomains: attitude, perceived control, and infective prevention practice with three likert-scale response options. The proportion of respondents with adequate knowledge and high intention to breastfeed was calculated. Approximately 60.1% of respondents had adequate knowledge (score > 60%) and less than 35.0% had high intention to breastfeed (score > 60%). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that yellow COVID-19 zone upon delivery and high intention were statistically significant (p < 0.05) determining factors for adequate knowledge of breastfeeding while monthly income category, previous breastfeeding experiences, history of jaundice, and the adequacy of breastfeeding knowledge were the significant factors predicting high intention to breastfeed. In conclusion, during COVID-19 pandemic, despite most postnatal mothers had adequate knowledge, knowledge specific to breastfeed during pandemic was poor and the intention to breastfeed was low during pandemic. Specific measures to improve knowledge of and intention to breastfeeding must be employed during pandemic to protect breastfeeding practice among postnatal mothers.