“Then you raise them with Shirchoy or cookies”: Understanding influences on delayed dietary diversity among children in Tajikistan

• Published in: Maternal and child nutrition 2019-04, Vol.15 (2), p.e12694-n/a
• Main Authors: Klassen, Ann C., Milliron, Brandy Joe, Suehiro, Yuki, Abdulloeva, Safina, Leonberg, Beth, Grossman, Suzanne, Chenault, Margaret, Bossert, Lisa, Maqsood, Jalal, Abduzhalilov, Rauf, Iskandari, Malika
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Central Asia; Child, Preschool; Culture; Diet - methods; dietary diversity; Female; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Infant; Infant Food - statistics & numerical data; Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; IYCF; Male; Original; poverty; Poverty - statistics & numerical data; Rural Population; Surveys and Questionnaires; Tajikistan; undernutrition; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1740-8695; 1740-8709
• DOI: 10.1111/mcn.12694

Dietary diversity is a key component of infant and young child feeding (IYCF) as well as adult health. In Tajikistan, a predominantly rural, former Soviet country in Central Asia, we conducted formative research to identify barriers to dietary diversity and strategies for nutrition behaviour change. In Spring, 2016, mixed‐methods data collection took place across 13 villages in all five regions, collecting collaborative mapping; structured assessments of stores and markets; home visits for dietary recalls; food storage, preparation, and meal observations; focus groups with pregnant women, mothers of young children, fathers, and mothers‐in‐law; and in‐depth expert interviews with local nutrition and health influentials. Overall, maternal diet was adequate in terms of diversity (only 13% reported