Avaliação da prática do aleitamento materno exclusivo e da introdução alimentar de crianças em vulnerabilidade social cadastradas no Programa Criança Alagoana (Cria) de União dos Palmares – AL

Abstract

Childhood is a period of development in which most human skills are established. Among the determining factors for good health, the one with the greatest impact is adequate nutrition during childhood, especially in the first two years of life. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the practice of breastfeeding and food introduction of children in extreme poverty living in the municipality of União dos Palmares, in the State of Alagoas. The research, characterized as a cross-sectional study, was approved by the Ethics and Research Committee of the Federal University of Alagoas, under Protocol No. 44202621.0.00005013. Data collection occurred through telephone interviews with the person responsible for the minor, using a standardized questionnaire aimed at collecting socioeconomic data and dietary data. Statistical analyzes were carried out using the SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science) version 20.0, with data expressed as frequency, means and standard deviation. 208 children were evaluated, 51% of them were male, 49% were female, with a mean chronological age of 26.18 ± 13.3 months. The data revealed that regarding breastfeeding, 8.2% of children were not breastfed, 16.3% were exclusively breastfed during the first 6 months of life, while 53.8% of children received other types of breastfeeding. Regarding the period of introduction of complementary foods, it is worth highlighting the offer of tea to 68.8% of children before 6 months of age, as well as the consumption of milk and dairy products in 40.6%, mucilage in 36 .3%, juices in 31.4% and added sugar in 21.9% of this age group. Regarding the period when consumption of food prepared by the family began, 2.7% of children began consumption during the first 6 months of life, 30.7% between 6 months and 1 year and 17.5% of children began consumption consumption of family food after 24 months. The findings of this study show a low rate of exclusive breastfeeding, while the provision of complementary foods, for the most part, occurred after the first year of life. Thus, from the study carried out, it was possible to verify that the main foods offered to children hinder the formation of healthy eating habits and are associated with greater morbidity and mortality in childhood, adolescence and adulthood.