Tellaintake among pregnant and lactating mothers: may it affect child growth?

Abstract Alcohol abuse among women is a public health importance that may impair prenatal and postnatal growth.Tellais among the most common homemade alcoholic beverages in rural Ethiopia, but little is known about the magnitude oftellaintake during pregnancy and lactation or its effects on child growth. The present study investigated associations between maternaltellaintake and the growth of their children. A cross-sectional mixed-methods study was conducted with mothers (n228) and their 12–36-month-old children and with key informants (n12).Tellaintake during most recent pregnancy and lactation was estimated retrospectively by glasses per drinking event and frequency of events. Nearly 80 % of mothers had consumed some amount oftelladuring their most recent pregnancy and lactation. Furthermore, 72 % of children had tasted or drunktellaat some time during their life. Stunting was 42 % and was significantly associated with maternaltellaconsumption at least every other day during pregnancy (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 4⋅97, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 2⋅20, 11⋅25), male sex (AOR 2⋅31, 95 % CI 1⋅27, 4⋅19), two or more under-5-year-old children in the household (AOR 3⋅52, 95 % CI 1⋅49, 8⋅33) and family size >5 (AOR 1⋅84, 95 % CI 1⋅01, 3⋅36). Underweight was 24⋅6 % and was associated with the child drinkingtellawith their mother (AOR 4⋅23, 95 % CI 1⋅99, 8⋅97), being male (AOR 3⋅73, 95 % CI 1⋅73, 7⋅94), having ≥3 diarrhoeal episodes in the last 3 months (AOR 11⋅83, 95 % CI 4⋅22, 33⋅14) and being in the older age group (AOR 2⋅98, 95 % CI 1⋅09, 8⋅13). The associations betweentellaintake and child growth suggest the need to mitigate the effects oftellaon child anthropometry.