Association of prenatal counselling and immediate postnatal support with early initiation of breastfeeding in Uttar Pradesh, India

BACKGROUND: Timely initiation of breastfeeding, also known as early initiation of breastfeeding, is a well-recognized life-saving intervention to reduce neonatal mortality. However, only one quarter of newborns in Uttar Pradesh, India were breastfed in the first hour of life. This paper aims to understand the association of community-based prenatal counselling and postnatal support at place of delivery with early initiation of breastfeeding in Uttar Pradesh, India. METHODS: Data from a cross-sectional survey of 9124 eligible women (who had a live birth in 59 days preceding the survey) conducted in 25 districts of Uttar Pradesh, India, in 2018, were used. Simple random sampling was used to randomly select 40 Community Development Blocks (sub district administrative units) in 25 districts. The Primary Sampling Units (PSUs), health service delivery unit for frontline workers, were selected randomly from a linelisting of PSUs in each selected Community Development Block. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the association of prenatal counselling and postnatal support on early initiation of breastfeeding in public, private and home deliveries. RESULTS: Overall 48.1% of mothers initiated breastfeeding within an hour, with major variation by place of delivery (61.2% public, 23.6% private and 32.6% home). The adjusted odds ratio (aOR) of early initiation of breastfeeding was highest among mothers who received both counselling and support (aOR 2.67; 95% CI 2.30, 3.11), followed by those who received only support (aOR 1.99; 95% CI 1.73, 2.28), and only counselling (aOR 1.40; 95% CI 1.18, 1.67) compared to mothers who received none. The odds of early initiation of breastfeeding was highest among mothers who received both prenatal counselling and postnatal support irrespective of delivery at public health facilities (aOR 2.49; 95% CI 2.07, 3.01), private health facilities (aOR 3.50; 95% CI 2.25, 5.44), or home (aOR 2.84; 95% CI 2.02, 3.98). CONCLUSIONS: A significant association of prenatal counselling and postnatal support immediately after birth on improving early initiation of breastfeeding, irrespective of place of delivery, indicates the importance of enhancing coverage of both the interventions through community and facility-based programs in Uttar Pradesh. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13006-021-00372-6.