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A mHealth voice messaging intervention to improve infant and young child feeding practices in Senegal

Author

Listed:
  • Shauna Downs

    (Rutgers University)

  • Jessica Fanzo

    (Johns Hopkins University)

  • Jozefina Kalaj

    (George Washington University)

  • Joachim Sackey

    (Rutgers University)

  • Stephen C. Smith

    (George Washington University)

Abstract

Mobile health (mHealth) interventions have the potential to improve infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices; however, gaps in the literature remain regarding their design, implementation and effectiveness. The aims of this study were to: design a mHealth voice messaging intervention delivered to mothers and fathers targeting IYCF practices and examine its implementation and impact in households with children 6-23 months in three rural villages in Senegal. We conducted focus groups (n=6) to inform the intervention development. We then conducted a pilot study (n=47 households) to examine the impact of the intervention on IYCF practices of children 6-23 months. Voice messages were sent to the children’s mothers and fathers over a period of four weeks (2 messages/week; 8 messages in total), and 24-hour dietary recalls and food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) were conducted before and immediately after the implementation of the mHealth intervention to examine its impact on IYCF practices. Overall, 3 of the 8 behaviors increased and one decreased. There was a significant increase in the number of children that consumed fish (60% vs 94%; p=0.008) as measured by the 24-hour recall after the completion of the intervention. We also found significantly higher frequency of egg (p=0.026), fish (p=0.004) and thick porridge (p=0.002) consumption in the previous 7-days measured by the FFQ. Our findings suggest that voice messaging IYCF interventions in Senegal have the potential to improve IYCF behaviors among young children in the short term. Future research should entail scaling-up the intervention and examining its sustainability over the long-term.

Suggested Citation

  • Shauna Downs & Jessica Fanzo & Jozefina Kalaj & Joachim Sackey & Stephen C. Smith, 2019. "A mHealth voice messaging intervention to improve infant and young child feeding practices in Senegal," Working Papers 2019-6, The George Washington University, Institute for International Economic Policy.
    • Handle: RePEc:gwi:wpaper:2019-6
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    File URL: http://www2.gwu.edu/~iiep/assets/docs/papers/2019WP/SmithIIEP2019-6.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    3. Smith, Lisa C. & Haddad, Lawrence James, 2000. "Explaining child malnutrition in developing countries: a cross-country analysis," Research reports 111, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    4. Kathryn Hurt & Rebekah Walker & Jennifer Campbell & Leonard Egede, 2016. "mHealth Interventions in Low and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review," Global Journal of Health Science, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 8(9), pages 183-183, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jeong, Joshua & Sullivan, Eileen F. & McCann, Juliet K., 2023. "Effectiveness of father-inclusive interventions on maternal, paternal, couples, and early child outcomes in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 328(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Infant and young child feeding; mHealth; behavior change communication; nutrition; horticulture; farming groups;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I15 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Economic Development
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets

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