Knowledge and attitude about breastfeeding among lactating mothers of rural Punjab

Poor knowledge about benefits ofbreastfeeding can influence the initiation and duration practices. this descriptive cross-sectional study was designed to evaluate the knowledge and attitude of lactating rural mothers.294 mothers were selected through a non-probability,convenient sampling method. a predesigned pretested questionnaire was used. mothers demonstrated good knowledge towards breast feeding. 74.8% knew that exclusive breast feeding should be continued for more than three months. 73.1% mothers agreed that breast feeding is a good method of contraception.61.6% reported that colostrum should be given to the infant 98.3% knew that complementary food should be started after 6 months.91.55 mothers said that breast feeding should be initiated after 1 hour of birth.according to iifa scoring 10.2,85.7 and 4.1% mothers showed negative,neutral and positive attitude about breast feeding respectively. they have knowledge but there is need to institute intervention aimed to promote breast feeding practices according to recommendations.