Social circumstances and cultural beliefs influence maternal nutrition, breastfeeding and child feeding practices in South Africa

Table 3 Foods cited by at least 10% of mothers and caregivers that they perceived should be given to children for growth and development

Food	Food group for dietary diversity	Percentage of women (N = 84)
Mealie meal porridge	Grains, roots and tubers^a	56
Fresh milk and nespray powdered milk	Dairy	39
Vegetables (cabbage, spinach, mixed vegetables, broccoli, cauliflower)	All vegetables and fruits group^b	35
Fruits (banana, apple, peaches)	All vegetables and fruits groups	32
Burned flour porridge	Grains, roots and tubers	23
Mashed potatoes with margarine	Grains, roots and tubers	23
Bottled milk (nan, infacare, nan pelargon)	Dairy products	19
Nestum and cerelac	Grains, roots and tubers	19
Breast milk	All nutrients, both macro- and micronutrients	18
Butternut and pumpkin	Vit A rich fruits and vegetables	18
Instant porridge	Grains, roots and tubers	17
Carrots	Vit A rich fruits and vegetables	17
Bread with sour milk	Grains, roots and tubers + Dairy products	12
Meat (chicken livers, lamb)	Flesh foods and organ meat	12
Oats	Grains, roots and tubers	10
Umphokoqo (Xhosa traditional dish)^c	Grains, roots and tubers + Dairy products	10
Yoghurt	Dairy products	10
Niknaks^d	Grains, roots and tubers	1

^aIncludes infant cereals
^bFalls in both Vit A rich fruits and vegetables, and Other fruits and vegetables groups
^cDish made from mealie meal and water and served with sour milk known locally as amasi
^dSouth African snack, originally cheese puffs which is primarily made from maize

ISSN: 1475-2891