Demographic and Health Survey 2009-10 - Timor-Leste Ministry of ...

Table 12.2 shows the percentages of children born in the five years preceding the survey who
were ever breastfed, who started breastfeeding within one hour and within one day of birth, and
among last-born children ever breastfed in the five years before the survey, the percentage who
received a prelacteal feed. Breastfeeding is nearly universal in Timor-Leste, with 97 percent of
children born in the five years preceding the survey having been breastfed at some time. The
percentage of children ever breastfed does not vary much by background characteristics.
On average four in five children are breastfed within the first hour of birth (82 percent) and 96
percent are breastfed within one day of birth. Thirteen percent of children are given a prelacteal feed,
that is, something other than breast milk, during the first three days of life. The percentage of children
who are breastfed early has increased in the past six years, the increase being more pronounced for
children breastfed within one hour of birth. There has been a rise in the percentage of children
breastfed within one hour of birth by about 74 percent, from 47 percent in the 2003 DHS to 82 percent
in 2009-10 TLDHS.
There is no difference in the timing of initial breastfeeding by sex of the child or by rural or
urban areas. Children from Manatuto are most likely to be breastfed immediately after birth (90
percent), and nearly all children in this region (99 percent) are breastfed within one day of birth.
Children in Liquiçá are least likely to be breastfed, with 69 percent breastfed within one hour and 88
percent fed within one day of birth. As expected, the proportion of children given a prelacteal feed is
also high in Liquiçá at 30 percent.
Women who have completed more than secondary school or a higher level of education are
more likely to breastfeed within one hour of birth (89 percent) compared with women who have no
education (80 percent). Women who have received more than secondary school education are more
likely to give a prelacteal feed (21 percent) compared with women with no education (11 percent).
Moreover, other characteristics of the infant and mother, such as type of assistance at delivery and
place of delivery, have important influences on early breastfeeding practices. There is a difference in
initiation of breastfeeding within one hour between children delivered by a health professional (84
percent) and children delivered with no assistance (72 percent). Eighty-five percent of children
delivered in a health facility have initiated breastfeeding within one hour of birth. Initiation of
breastfeeding within an hour of birth for children delivered at home has improved by 71 percent over
the past years, rising from 48 percent in the 2003 DHS to 82 percent in the 2009-10 TLDHS.
Differences in early breastfeeding by wealth are small, although larger proportions of children in the
highest wealth quintile are likely to be breastfed within an hour of birth.
12.3 BREASTFEEDING STATUS BY AGE
UNICEF and WHO recommend that children be exclusively breastfed during the first six
months of life and that children be given solid or semisolid complementary food in addition to
continued breastfeeding after six months. The nutrition program under the National Nutrition Strategy
2004 promotes exclusive breastfeeding through the age of 6 months and thereafter promotes
introducing complementary foods along with continued breast milk until the child is at least two years
of age (MOH, 2004c). Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended in the first 6 months of life because
breast milk is uncontaminated and contains all the nutrients necessary for children.
Information on breastfeeding was obtained in the 2009-10 TLDHS by asking mothers about
the current breastfeeding status of all children under age 3 and, for the youngest child born in the three
years before the survey and living with the mother, food (liquids or solids) given to the child the day
before the survey.
Table 12.3 shows the percent distribution of youngest children under age 3 years by
breastfeeding status and the percentage of children under age 3 using a bottle with a nipple. Contrary
to WHO’s recommendations, only about half (52 percent) of children under age 6 months are
exclusively breastfed in Timor-Leste. There are high proportions of children 0-5 months receiving
food other than breast milk with complementary food (26 percent), plain water only (7 percent), and
other milk (14 percent).
154 | Nutrition of Children and Women