Weaning Practices of Turkish Mothers: A Mixed-Model Research

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study is to determine the weaning practices of mothers who have children between the ages of 2 and 5 years. Materials and Methods: This study was designed as a cross-sectional descriptive study, which was carried out between September 1, 2019 and October 1, 2019 in a pediatric clinic of a university hospital. For a better understanding, the traditional approaches, qualitative, and quantitative data were collected concurrently and analyzed together using Creswell's concurrent transformative mixed-model research design. Results: Of the 114 participants, the overall mean age was 29.2 +/- 4.5 years. The mean breastfeeding duration was 15.3 +/- 8.2 months. Sixty five (57.0%) of participants terminated breastfeeding themselves and 55 (85.9%) of them used traditional methods for weaning their children. The traditional methods used for termination of breastfeeding were staining the nipples to make baby startle (16.4%), applying nipples with a bad taste or smell to make baby disgust (40.0%), covering the nipples with various materials (18.2%), using a pacifier or feeding bottle (20.0%), and separation from mother (5.5%). Conclusions: In this study, it was found that most of the Turkish mothers use improper traditional methods for weaning. This study also demonstrated the urgent need to plan effective counseling services to implement natural weaning rather than traditional methods that are unsuitable for weaning.