Association between Acute Gastroenteritis and Type of Feeding in Infants up to 6 Months of Age: A Comparative Study of Breast Feeding, Formula Feeding and Mixed Feeding in CMH Abbottabad
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70749/ijbr.v3i7.1869Keywords:
Breast feeding, Formula feeding, Gastroenteritis, Infants, Mixed feeding.Abstract
Objectives: To determine the association between acute gastroenteritis and type of feeding in infants up to 6 months of age presenting to the pediatric ward. Study Design: Case-control study. Place and duration of study: This study was conducted at the department of pediatrics, CMH, Abbottabad from Nov-2024 to Apr-2025. Methods: A total of 65 infants aged ≤ 6 months presenting with acute gastroenteritis were included in this study. Another 65 infants belonging to the same age group present for reasons other than any severe infection or disease were included in the control group. Mother of each infant included in this study was interviewed to find the details of feeding practices and infants were then classified as per WHO classification as exclusive breast feeding, exclusive formula feeding and mixed feeding. The association between feeding type and the incidence of acute gastroenteritis was assessed by applying the chi-square test between the results of study group and the controls. Results: The mean age of infants was 3.4±1.49 months. Highest number of infants in the study group were on exclusive formula feeding (44.6%), followed by mixed feeding (36.9%) and only 18.5% were on exclusive breast feeding in contrast to control group where this percentage was 13.9%, 35.4% and 50.8%, respectively. A statistically significant association was found between the feeding type and the incidence of acute gastroenteritis (p < 0.001). Infants who were on exclusive formula feeding had significantly higher odds of developing acute gastroenteritis (OR: 8.86), followed by those on mixed feeding (OR: 2.87), while exclusive breast feeding had the lowest risk. Conclusion: A significant association is found between feeding practices and the risk of acute gastroenteritis in infants aged ≤6 months.
Downloads
References
1. Guarino A, Aguilar J, Berkley J, Broekaert I, Vazquez-Frias R, Holtz L, et al. Acute Gastroenteritis in Children of the World: What Needs to Be Done? J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2020;70(5):694-701.
https://doi.org/10.1097/MPG.0000000000002669.
2. Maliji BA, Babayeemehr A, Rohani K, Mehrabani S, Aghajanpour. Role of the World Health Organization in Management of Gastrointestinal diseases caused by Contaminated Water in Children in the Middle East: a review article. J Pediatr Rev. 2023;11(1):59–66.
https://doi.org/10.32598/jpr.11.1.285.2
3. Farfán-García AE, Imdad A, Zhang C, Arias-Guerrero MY, Sánchez-Álvarez NT, Iqbal J, et al. Etiology of acute gastroenteritis among children less than 5 years of age in Bucaramanga, Colombia: A case-control study. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2020;14(6):e0008375.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0008375.
4. Mafokwane T, Djikeng A, Nesengani LT, Dewar J, Mapholi O. Gastrointestinal Infection in South African Children under the Age of 5 years: A Mini Review. Gastroenterol Res Pract. 2023;2023:1906782.
https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/1906782.
5. Daley SF, Avva U. Pediatric Dehydration. [Updated 2024 Jun 8]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan-.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK436022
6. Szyller H, Antosz K, Batko J, Mytych A, Dziedziak M, Wrześniewska M, et al. Bioactive Components of Human Milk and Their Impact on Child's Health and Development, Literature Review. Nutrients. 2024;16(10):1487.
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16101487.
7. Marege A, Regassa B, Seid M, Tadesse D, Siraj M, Manilal A. Bacteriological quality and safety of bottle food and associated factors among bottle-fed babies attending pediatric outpatient clinics of Government Health Institutions in Arba Minch, southern Ethiopia. J Health Popul Nutr. 2023;42(1):46.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s41043-023-00387-1.
8. Monge-Montero C, van der Merwe LF, Tagliamonte S, Agostoni C, Vitaglione P. Why do mothers mix milk feed their infants? Results from a systematic review. Nutr Rev. 2024;82(10):1355-1371. https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuad134.
9. Jansen S, Wasityastuti W, Astarini FD, Hartini S. Mothers' knowledge of breastfeeding and infant feeding types affect acute respiratory infections. J Prev Med Hyg. 2020;61(3):E401-E408.
https://doi.org/10.15167/2421-4248/jpmh2020.61.3.1499.
10. Ali W, Khaliq A, Rahman A, Akbar S, Shah MU, Ibadullah. Feeding patterns of children under 24 months with severe acute malnutrition at Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar. Indus J Biosci Res. 2025;3(3):249-3.
https://doi.org/10.70749/ijbr.v3i3.684.
11. Khan MA. Epidemiological studies on gastroenteritis in children in the Bannu district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Z Gesundh Wiss. 2023;31(5):739-46.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-021-01592-0.
12. Malik W, Ashraf S, Malik S. Relation of bottlefeed versus exclusive breastfeeding on reduction of acute gastroenteritis-related hospitalization in under 6 months infant. Pak J Med Health Sci. 2018;12(1):33-4.
13. World Health Organization. Infant and young child feeding [Internet]. Geneva: WHO; 2023 Dec 20 [cited 2025 May 15].
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/infant-and-young-child-feeding.
14. Sharma R, Sood A, Nair P. Infant feeding practices and risk of occurrence of diarrheal and respiratory infections in infancy-a hospital based study. Int J Contemp Pediatr 2017;4:1717-20.
https://doi.org/10.18203/2349-3291.ijcp20173772.
15. Dimitrovska-Ivanova M, Zisovska E. Breast milk effects on clinical signs of acute gastroenteritis in infants up to 6 months of age. Res Phys Educ Sport Health. 2020;9(1):145-50.
https://doi.org/10.46733/PESH2090145di.
16. Ali MKM. Comparison between breastfeeding and artificial feeding among infants with acute gastroenteritis in Al-Azizyia General Hospital. J Wasit Sci Med. 2023;16(3):1-18.
https://doi.org/10.31185/jwsm.403
17. Shah SSH, Haider S, Nazir S. Feeding practices and nutritional status in children of one month to three years of age presenting with acute gastroenteritis. J Univ Med Dent Coll. 2016;7(1):31-5.
18. Mafokwane T, Djikeng A, Nesengani LT, Dewar J, Mapholi O. Gastrointestinal Infection in South African Children under the Age of 5 years: A Mini Review. Gastroenterol Res Pract. 2023;2023:1906782.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Indus Journal of Bioscience Research
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
