{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,11]],"date-time":"2025-11-11T15:51:22Z","timestamp":1762876282195,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":42,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,4,30]],"date-time":"2021-04-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1619740800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"UNICEF Ethiopia"},{"name":"Tigray Regional Health Bureau"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"\nBackground<\/jats:title>\nWhile lactation is a physiological process requiring high energy demand to fulfill the nutrient requirements of the mother and the breastfeeding child, many factors affecting maternal nutrient intake can lead to nutritional deficits. Previous studies in Ethiopia have reported the prevalence of maternal and child undernutrition and related complications. However, qualitative studies exploring potential barriers to utilizing available nutrition interventions are limited. This study, therefore, sought to qualitatively explore barriers hindering the uptake of nutrition services among lactating mothers from rural communities in Tigray, northern Ethiopia.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n\nMethods<\/jats:title>\nWe conducted 6 in-depth interviews, 70 key informant interviews, and 13 focus group discussions among purposively selected community groups, experts, and lactating mothers between November- 2017 and January- 2018. Audio records of all interviews and focus group discussions were transcribed verbatim (word-to-word) and translated into English. Then, translated data were analyzed thematically using qualitative data analysis software Atlas ti-version 7.4.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n\nResults<\/jats:title>\nThe participants in this study perceived that lactating mothers in their study area are not properly utilizing available and recommended nutrition interventions, and as a result, their nutrient intake was reported as inadequate. Participants identified inadequate accessibility and availability of foods, feeding practices, cultural and religious influences, focus on agricultural production and productivity, barriers related to health services and poor access to water, sanitation and hygiene as major barriers hindering the uptake of nutrition interventions by lactating women in Tigray, northern Ethiopia.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>\n\nConclusion<\/jats:title>\nThe uptake of nutrition intervention services was low among lactating mothers and was hindered by multiple socio-cultural and health service related factors requiring problem-specific interventions at community, health facility, and administrative levels to improve the nutritional status of lactating mothers in the study area.<\/jats:p>\n<\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0250696","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,4,30]],"date-time":"2021-04-30T17:29:35Z","timestamp":1619803775000},"page":"e0250696","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":7,"title":["Barriers to utilize nutrition interventions among lactating women in rural communities of Tigray, northern Ethiopia: An exploratory study"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2595-5885","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Selemawit Asfaw","family":"Beyene","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Lemlem","family":"Weldegerima","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Freweini Gebrearegay","family":"Tela","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Omer","family":"Seid","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Amal Tucker","family":"Brown","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Afework Mulugeta","family":"Bezabih","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,4,30]]},"reference":[{"volume-title":"Energy and protein requirements: report of a Joint FAO","year":"1973","author":"F Joint","key":"pone.0250696.ref001"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0250696.ref002","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"170","DOI":"10.2307\/1241987","article-title":"Determinants of the intrahousehold allocation of food in the rural Philippines","volume":"70","author":"B Senauer","year":"1988","journal-title":"American Journal of Agricultural Economics"},{"issue":"9","key":"pone.0250696.ref003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2025","DOI":"10.3390\/nu11092025","article-title":"Breast milk content of vitamin A and E from early-to mid-lactation is affected by inadequate dietary intake in Brazilian adult women","volume":"11","author":"MR Machado","year":"2019","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0250696.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"288","DOI":"10.3390\/nu11020288","article-title":"Dietary intake patterns among lactating and non-lactating women of reproductive age in rural Zambia","volume":"11","author":"C Kaliwile","year":"2019","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"volume-title":"WHA Global Nutrition Targets 2025, Stunting Policy Brief","author":"WHO\/NMH\/NHD","key":"pone.0250696.ref005"},{"volume-title":"The W orld H ealth O rganization\u2019s global target for reducing childhood stunting by 2025: rationale and proposed actions","year":"2013","author":"M De Onis","key":"pone.0250696.ref006"},{"key":"pone.0250696.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"100384","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ssmph.2019.100384","article-title":"What explains the fall in child stunting in Sub-Saharan Africa?","volume":"8","author":"LR Buisman","year":"2019","journal-title":"SSM-population health"},{"key":"pone.0250696.ref008","unstructured":"Organization WH. 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