Dietary Diversity and Meal Frequency Practices among Children Aged 6-23 Months in Agro Pastoral Communities in Afar Region, Ethiopia: A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Inappropriate infant and young child feeding practices in the first two years of life are among the major causes of childhood malnutrition in developing countries, including Ethiopia. Dietary diversity refers to increasing the consumption of a variety of foods across and within the food groups. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the minimum dietary diversity and minimum meal frequency practices among children aged 6-23 months in Agro pastoral communities, Afar Region, Ethiopia. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from December 1-30, 2018. A multi-stage stratified sampling followed by a systematic random sampling technique was used to select participants. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analysis was employed to identify factors associated with minimum dietary diversity and meal frequency. The adjusted odds ratios (AOR) together with their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed to see the association between the outcome and independent variables. The statistical significance was declared at p-value Results: The proportion of children who met the minimum dietary diversity and meal frequency were 21.8% (95% CI: 19.0%-24.7%) and 43.8% (95% CI: 40.4%-47.2%) respectively. Maternal education (AOR = 2.5, 95% CI = 1.1-5.3 and AOR = 3.9, 95% CI = 1.3-11.5), maternal occupation (AOR = 4.2, 95% CI = 2.3-7.8), sex of child (AOR = 2.6, 95% CI = 1.5-4.5) and history of postnatal care visit (AOR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.1-3.2) were independently associated with minimum dietary diversity. Similarly, age of child (AOR = 2.8, 95% CI = 1.4-5.5 and AOR = 5.3, 95% CI = 2.3-12.4), sex of child (AOR = 2.6, 95% CI = 1.4-4.6) and history of postnatal care visit (AOR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.3-3.8) were the factors significantly associated with minimum meal frequency practices. Conclusions: The current study showed that the proportions of children who met the minimum dietary diversity and meal frequency were low. Increasing maternal education, being a housewife, being a male child and attending a postnatal care visit were independently associated with minimum dietary diversity. Likewise, increasing the age of a child, being a male child and attending a postnatal care visit were significantly associated with minimum meal frequency. Improving maternal education and health care utilization, health and nutrition counseling during postnatal care visits are highly recommended to improve infant and young child feeding practices.