Infant and young child feeding practices, sociodemographic factors and their association with nutritional status of children aged <3 years in India: findings of the National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau survey, 2011–2012

Objective To study infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices and their association with nutritional status among young children. Design A community-based, cross-sectional study was carried out in ten states of India, using a multistage random sampling method. Anthropometric measurements such as length/height and weight were conducted and nutritional assessment was done using the WHO child growth standards. Setting National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau survey, 2011–2012. Participants Children aged Results Only 36 % of infants received breast-feeding within an hour of birth and 50 % were exclusively breast-fed up to 6 months. Prevalence of underweight, stunting and wasting was 38, 41 and 22 %, respectively. The chance of undernutrition among Conclusions Undernutrition is still an important public health problem in India and observed to be associated with low socio-economic status, illiteracy of mother, low birth weight and dietary diversity. Improving socio-economic and literacy status of mothers can help in improving maternal nutrition during pregnancy and thus low birth weight. Also, improving knowledge of mothers about IYCF practices will help in improving children’s nutritional status.