Vol. 12, Issue 3 (2023)

In the early years, a mother is the primary carer for her children, and this care is largely influenced by her knowledge and comprehension of fundamental nutrition and child health. It was clear that her education was vital to how she raised her children. The first child of educated moms is less likely to be born at an early age that would decrease the risk of infant mortality. Literate mothers engage in more intra-family decision-making that affects the requirements of the child and engage their children for the better health services. The development of the child and the mother's education are closely related. By consuming high-quality food that was nourishing and conducive to good health, this encourages better eating habits. Healthy eating habits that are formed in childhood keep a variety of diseases at bay, and they continue to develop into adolescence and adulthood. Healthy infancy therefore guarantees healthy adulthood. Mothers play a vital role in the growth and welfare of their children.

The results of the survey revealed that mothers' knowledge of vitamins (63.33%), minerals (75%), the value of breast milk (78.33%), nutritional deficiency disorders (65%), and general health (78.34%) is of a medium level. Only education and work are highly significant at the 1% level of significance for socio-economic variables that affected the mother's nutritional awareness. Malnutrition affects 35% of children, with the highest percentage (23.33%) in Grade 1 malnutrition, then 10% in Grade 2 malnutrition, and 1.67% in Grade 3 malnutrition. Male subjects had a higher rate of underweight children in Grade 1 (23.33%) than female subjects (20.0%). The relationship between children's nutritional status and their mother's nutrition knowledge was positive and significant at 5% (r =0.316*), and it was favourably correlated (r =0.266*) with their mother's educational level.