Peer-reviewed article
Relationship Between Mothers' Knowledge and Parenting Patterns in Feeding and The Incidence of Wasting in Toddlers Aged 6-59 Months
Mahfudzah, Yasir Farhat, Zulfiana Dewi ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This cross-sectional study looked at whether mothers' nutrition knowledge and feeding practices were linked to wasting in children aged 6-59 months in Panawakan Village, Indonesia. It included 99 respondents. About 26.3% of toddlers had wasting and 73.7% did not. The study found statistically significant associations of wasting with both maternal knowledge and feeding practices. The authors recommend that mothers improve their nutrition knowledge and use appropriate feeding practices.
Key points
- 73.7% of toddlers did not have wasting, while 26.3% did.
- Most mothers had sufficient knowledge (46.5%) and poor parenting practices in feeding (46.5%).
- Maternal knowledge was related to wasting (p = 0.000; r = 0.373).
- Maternal feeding practices were related to wasting (p = 0.003; r = 0.299).
- The authors recommend improving mothers' nutrition knowledge and feeding practices to prevent wasting.
Limitations
The cross-sectional design with a single village and 99 respondents shows association only, not cause and effect, and cannot be generalised widely. The abstract does not report how knowledge and feeding practices were measured, and the correlations are modest in size.
Abstract
Wasting is an acute form of malnutrition among children under five that remains a significant public health problem in Indonesia. This condition is influenced by several factors, including maternal knowledge and child feeding practices. This study aimed to determine the relationship between maternal knowledge and feeding practices with the incidence of Wasting among children aged 6–59 months in Panawakan Village, the working area of Puskesmas Haur Gading in 2026. This study was a quantitative cross-sectional design. A total of 99 respondents were drawn from the sample. Data collected included respondent characteristics, maternal knowledge, parenting practices regarding feeding, and the incidence of Wasting in toddlers. Data were analyzed using univariate tests with frequency tables and bivariate tests using the Spearman Rank correlation test with a significance level of 0.05. The results showed that the majority of toddlers did not experience Wasting (73.7%), while 26.3% experienced Wasting . Most mothers had sufficient knowledge (46.5%) and poor parenting practices (46.5%). Spearman's test results showed a relationship between maternal knowledge and Wasting (p = 0.000; r = 0.373) and between maternal feeding practices and Wasting (p = 0.003; r = 0.299). It is recommended that mothers of toddlers improve their nutritional knowledge and implement appropriate feeding practices to prevent Wasting in toddlers.