Understanding infant feeding practices, relations to the health clinic and experiences of receiving conflicting advices: A qualitative study with Somali mothers living in Oslo

The objective of this study was to generate knowledge about infant feeding practices of Somali mothers and explore how they experience the nutrition communication at the health clinic, towards developing approaches for practicing cultural sensitivity in health and nutrition communication. In-depth individual interviews with 15 Somali mothers with one-year old infants living in Oslo were conducted. The findings show that exclusive breastfeeding was less common among the mothers, due to early introduction water, formula and early introduction of tastes of solids. Breastfeeding duration was generally short, only two of the mothers were still breastfeeding at 12 months. At four months, tastes of solids were commonly introduced, and homemade food was considered superior to commercially prepared infant food. The mothers described a stressful atmosphere at the health clinics, and time constraints among the health nurses were an issue of concern. Information about introduction of solids was regarded as insufficient, as it was commonly given in form of written brochures and booklets. The mothers reported about receiving infant feeding advice from their social network that were in conflict with the information provided at the health clinic, however, the public health nurse was considered as the most reliable source of information. This study presents knowledge about Somali mothers’ infant feeding practices that directly could guide discussions with these families. These findings also suggests that the health clinic has a major opportunity to promote appropriate infant feeding to immigrant Somali mothers, as it appears that the information provided at the health clinic is viewed as trustworth