Contribution to prevention of children malnutrition: case of the district of Bandiagara in Mali

Abstract

The nutrition situation of under five Malian children has not changed over the past 20 years. This is mainly due to inappropriate infant and young child feeding practices. In order to contribute to the prevention of malnutrition among this age group, we identified breastfeeding practices and local recipes which could be used as adequate complementary foods for children between 6 and 23 months in Bandiagara, an area where child malnutrition is prevalent. Our study showed that only 6,7% of children were exclusively breastfed for 6 months and 4% of children older than 6 months had not received anything more than breast milk. This illustrates a lack of knowledge about optimal breastfeeding practices in the study area. On the basis of locally available foods, we are reporting here on 3 of the 40 new recipes that were proposed. These recipes are rich in energy, proteins and various micronutrients, easily accessible by people and culturally acceptable. The use of these recipes by mothers could contribute to a better nutritional status of children under 2 years in the study area and in Mali. These recipes could also be replicated in other African countries where the ingredients used to make them are produced and frequently consumed.