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After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future.
 
Co-founder Victoria Martin is pleased to see this work continue under Wits' leadership. Victoria knows that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction.
 
We honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades. Meanwhile, La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA) continues independently at cila.comminitcila.com and is linked with The CI Global site.
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Effect of nutrition education on exclusive breastfeeding for nutritional outcome of low birth weight babies

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Thakur, S. K., S. K. Roy, et al. (2012). "Effect of nutrition education on exclusive breastfeeding for nutritional outcome of low birth weight babies." European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 66(3): 376-381.

Background/Objectives: Low birth weight (LBW), defined as the body weight at birth of less than 2500 g, is a major public health problem in Bangladesh, where 37% of the babies are born with LBW. The objective of this study is to see the impact of nutrition education on growth of LBW babies with early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding compared to control group.

Subjects/Methods: A total of 184 LBW babies and their mothers who attended the Maternal Care and Health Training Institute and Dhaka Medical College Hospital were randomly allocated to either intervention or control group. Enrollment of the study population started in May 2008 and was completed in October 2008. Nutrition education was given to mothers twice weekly for 2 months, on initiation of breastfeeding within 1 h, exclusive breastfeeding and increasing their dietary intake. Nutritional status of LBW babies was assessed for length and weight every 2 weeks. Data were analyzed using SPSS/Window's version 12. Comparison of mean of data was done using standard Student's t-test.

Results: Mean initial body weight and length of LBW babies were similar in both groups (2261±198 g vs 2241±244 g, P=0.535 and 43.0±1.3 cm vs 43.0±1.7 cm, P=0.77). Body weight and length of the LBW babies after 2 months increased significantly (3620±229 g vs 3315±301 g, P<0.001 and 50.2±1.3 cm vs 48.7±1.6 cm, P<0.001). It was found that the intervention group suffered less from respiratory illness compared with the control group (39% vs 66%, P<0.001). The rate of early initiation of breastfeeding was also significantly higher with nutrition intervention (59.8% vs 37.2%, P<0.001). Exclusive breastfeeding rate was significantly higher in intervention group (59.8% vs 37%, P=0.003).

Conclusions: The present study showed that weight and length gain of LBW babies significantly increased by breastfeeding and nutrition education. Therefore, nutrition education on breastfeeding proves to be a strong tool to reduce the high risk of malnutrition and mortality of the LBW babies