A Grandmother and Grandfather posing with their five grandchildren
Photo Credit: Maxime Fossat/USAID Advancing Nutrition

Counseling is most effective, when coupled with additional interventions at the household, community, and societal levels that support and reinforce the counseling sessions, creating a supportive environment for clients to act on the guidance provided. Clients need to have the agency, resources, time, and support to act on the counseling provided. USAID Advancing Nutrition has conducted research and generated materials that highlight ways program designers and implementers can help create a supportive enabling environment for caregivers to act on infant and young child feeding counseling guidance. These resources—

  • Share resources, research, and guidance on how to understand and respond to social norms that impact maternal, infant and young child diets, effectively engage family members to improve maternal and child nutrition, and design more effective social and behavior change activities to support improved complementary feeding practices.
  • Share guidance and resources to encourage more acknowledgement, support, and measurement of caregiver resources that are likely relevant to providing optimal feeding and nurturing care for young children.
  • Share guidance and resources around how to engage family members in maternal, infant, and young child nutrition activities and create a supportive enabling environment for caregivers to act on nutrition counseling.