Social-economic determinants of breastfeeding duration in Tanzania

In Tanzania most women do not follow standard breastfeeding procedures which are essential for maximizing the benefits of breastfeeding. A review of the literature reveals that very few studies have been conducted in Tanzania to ascertain factors influencing breastfeeding duration and exclusive breastfeeding practice. This study has attempted to fill this gap by using OLS and Cox Proportional Hazard Model in studying the duration of breastfeeding. On the other hand the Logistic regression has been employed to ascertain factors influencing exclusive breastfeeding practice. With regard to breastfeeding duration, the results indicate maternal age, age at first marriage, years of schooling, total children ever born, age at first birth and wealth index (middle category) birth interval, child sex (male) and marital status (married) as important factors . On the other hand maternal age, age at first birth, total children ever born and the number of antenatal visits are important factors influencing exclusive breastfeeding practice in Tanzania. This study asserts that in order to promote standard breastfeeding procedures in Tanzania incumbent Policy makers need to: devise mechanisms to discourage women from having children at extremely young age; design women empowerment schemes that will create more educational opportunities for women so as to increase their years of schooling; aggressively promote the use of family planning methods; design awareness campaigns which intend to sensitize women on the benefits of breastfeeding.