Infant and young child feeding

The community health worker, Koni, is making house visits and finds a young child with diarrhea. The child’s mother, Larai, believes it is because the child is teething and does not take action. Koni instructs Larai on proper care for a child with diarrhea, and discusses the importance of separating domestic animals to prevent illness and diarrhea. They wash their hands, prepare oral rehydration salt (ORS), and give it to the child. Then, the child is brought to the health center. In another home, Koni finds a healthy six month old child.

Wasila does not feel well, so her mother-in-law and husband take her to the health center, where she learns that she is one-month pregnant. The health worker advises her on practices she should adopt during pregnancy. She explains that her baby’s first 1,000 days have started, the period from the first day of pregnancy to the child’s second birthday. Wasila advises a friend to go to the health center to learn about the 1,000 days as well.

Chima runs into her neighbors on the way to the field, and her neighbor, Rakiya, explains that she is carrying a snack to the field for her baby to eat, even though her baby has already had breakfast. Rakiya explains that it is important to feed young children frequently. While Rakiya and her husband work in the field, their older son feeds the baby. Chima asks the community health worker (CHW) about the frequency of feeding her child who is under two.

A woman prepares porridge for her baby, and asks her husband to feed the child while she goes out. The husband washes his and his baby’s hands and patiently encourages her to eat, following active/responsive feeding recommendations. In another household, older children properly encourage the younger children to eat from a separate plate and supervised by the father. The two husbands then discuss the 1000 days behaviors and why they are important to keep their children healthy and strong.