scholarly journals Nutrition Education of Mothers and Zinc Supplementation among Children in the Rural Community, Cameroon

Author(s):  
Nicolas Policarpe Nolla ◽  
Marie Modestine Kana Sop ◽  
Marlyne Joséphine Mananga ◽  
Inocent Gouado

Aims: Malnutrition among children, especially stunting is a public health problem in Cameroon. This study assesses the impact of zinc supplementation of children and nutrition education of mothers on the nutritional status of the children in the Bangang rural community. Study Design: This was a descriptive and prospective study. Place and Duration of Study: The study took place in the Bangang community in the Region of West Cameroon, during the period from March to December 2015. Methodology: The children aged 6 to 48 months and mothers aged 20 to 34 years were selected after the baseline survey and enrolled. Dietary surveys were used to evaluate the frequency of foods consumed by 150 children. Zinc supplementation group of children (ZSG, n= 25) received 10 mg of zinc sulfate tablets per day for 14 days and control group (CG, n=25) was formed by children whose mothers received nutrition counseling. The nutrition education sessions organized into 4 modules were conducted quarterly for 9 months on a sample of 100 mothers. After interventions, impact of zinc supplementation and maternal education was assessed by determining height for age and weight for age indices, and biochemistry parameters. Results: The results showed that zincemia of ZSG varied significantly (P = .0001) and not significantly (P = .23) for CG. After nutrition education, dietary diversity was improved; reduction of chronic malnutrition (10.9%) and increasing number of children with good nutritional status (6.6%) were observed. Increased for phosphoremia (3.6 ± 2.4 to 5.7 ± 1.8 mg/dl; P = .001) and albuminemia (34.8 ± 15.5 to 46.9 ± 8.9 g/l; P = .002) were significant which was not the case of calcemia, zincemia, magnesemia and serum iron. Conclusion: This study showed positive impact of zinc supplementation and maternal education on the nutritional status of children.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Getenesh Berhanu Teshome ◽  
Susan J. Whiting ◽  
Timothy J. Green ◽  
Demelash Mulualem ◽  
Carol J. Henry

Abstract Background: Improving children's weight status through nutrition education (NE) for mothers about using pulses in complementary feeding has been demonstrated in pilot studies, but no effect on stunting was reported. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of a 9-month pulse-nutrition education program on improving mothers' knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) towards pulses, as well as its effect on children's diet diversity, and nutritional status. The NE was delivered by Health Extension Workers (HEWs). Methods: A cluster randomized study was employed for the community-based interventional study. Twelve randomly selected villages in Sidama Zone, Southern Ethiopia were included in the study. A total of 772 mother-child pairs involved in the study; where 386 mother-child pairs in the intervention group received additional messages about pulse-cereal complementary food, and 386 pairs (the control) received only routine health education for 9 months. A survey on mothers’ KAP and anthropometric measurements of the children were taken at baseline, midline, and endline. ANOVA and descriptive statistics were used to analyzed data. Results: At baseline and endline, maternal KAP and the dietary diversity score of the children (mean age at endline 18.8 ± 2.9 mo) were assessed. Intervention mothers’ KAP improved (p<0.001) at midline and endline compared to that of the control group, as did frequency of pulse consumption and Dietary Diversity Score (DDS) among children. At 9 months, the prevalence of stunting, wasting, and underweight was significantly reduced in the intervention group compared to the control group (p=0.001). Conclusions: NE delivered by HEWs improved KAP of mothers regarding pulse consumption and dietary diversity of children led to improved nutritional status of the children. Training HEWs on the use of pulses for complementary food may be an effective way to improve the health of children in Ethiopian communities. Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov #NCT02638571


2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 480-486 ◽  
Author(s):  
Canaan Negash ◽  
Tefera Belachew ◽  
Carol J. Henry ◽  
Afework Kebebu ◽  
Kebede Abegaz ◽  
...  

Background Nutritious complementary foods are needed in countries where undernutrition and stunting are major problems, but mothers may be reluctant to change from traditional gruels. Objective To test whether a recipe-based complementary feeding education intervention would improve knowledge and practice of mothers with young children in Hula, Ethiopia. Methods A baseline survey of 200 eligible, randomly selected mother—child pairs gathered data on sociodemographic characteristics, food security status, knowledge and practices concerning complementary feeding, food group intakes of children aged 6 to 23 months by 24-hour recalls, and children's anthropometric measurements. Twice a month for 6 months, women in the intervention group received an education session consisting of eight specific messages using Alive and Thrive posters and a demonstration and tasting of a local barley and maize porridge recipe containing 30% broad beans. The control group lived in a different area and had no intervention. Results At 6 months, knowledge and practice scores regarding complementary feeding were significantly improved ( p < .001) in the intervention group but not in the control group. The intervention resulted in improvement of children's dietary diversity, as well as mean intake of energy and selected nutrients, compared with children in the control group. Changes in height and weight did not differ between the two groups. Conclusions Community-based nutrition education over 6 months that included demonstration of a local porridge recipe with broad beans added improved the complementary feeding practices of caregivers and the nutritional status of their young children.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Getenesh Berhanu Teshome ◽  
Susan J. Whiting ◽  
Timothy J. Green ◽  
Demmelash Mulualem ◽  
Carol J. Henry

Abstract Background Improving children’s weight status through nutrition education (NE) for mothers about using pulses in complementary feeding has been demonstrated in pilot studies, but no effect on stunting was reported. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of a 9-month pulse-nutrition education program on improving mothers’ knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) towards pulses, as well as its effect on children’s diet diversity, and nutritional status. The NE was delivered by Health Extension Workers (HEWs). Methods A cluster randomized study was employed for the community-based interventional study. Twelve randomly selected villages in Sidama Zone, Southern Ethiopia were included in the study. A total of 772 mother-child pairs involved in the study; where 386 mother-child pairs in the intervention group received additional messages about pulse-cereal complementary food, and 386 pairs (the control) received only routine health education for 9 months. A survey on mothers’ KAP and anthropometric measurements of the children were taken at baseline, midpoint, and end point. ANOVA and descriptive statistics were used to analyzed data. Results At baseline and end point, maternal KAP and the dietary diversity score of the children (mean age at end point 18.8 ± 2.9 mo) were assessed. Intervention mothers’ KAP improved (p < 0.001) at midpoint and end point compared to that of the control group, as did frequency of pulse consumption and Dietary Diversity Score (DDS) among children. At 9 months, the prevalence of stunting, wasting, and underweight was significantly reduced in the intervention group compared to the control group (p = 0.001). Conclusions NE delivered by HEWs improved KAP of mothers regarding pulse consumption and dietary diversity of children led to improved nutritional status of the children. Training HEWs on the use of pulses for complementary food may be an effective way to improve the health of children in Ethiopian communities. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov #NCT02638571. Date of registration: 12/18/2015. Prospectively registered.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Getenesh Berhanu Teshome ◽  
Susan J. Whiting ◽  
Timothy J. Green ◽  
Demelash Mulualem ◽  
Carol J. Henry

Abstract Background Improving children's weight status through nutrition education (NE) for mothers about using pulses in complementary feeding has been demonstrated in pilot studies, but no effect on stunting was reported. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a 9-month pulse-nutrition education program on mothers' knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) towards pulses, as well as its impact on children's dietary diversity, and nutritional status. The NE was delivered by Health Extension Workers (HEWs). Methods A cluster randomized study was employed for the community-based interventional study. Twelve randomly selected villages in Sidama Zone, Southern Ethiopia were included in the study. A total of 772 mother-child pairs involved in the study; where 386 mother-child pairs in the intervention group received additional messages about pulse-cereal complementary food, and 386 pairs (the control) received only routine health education for 9 months. A survey on mothers’ KAP and anthropometric measurements of the children were taken at baseline, midline, and endline. Results At baseline and endline, maternal KAP and the dietary diversity score of the children (mean age at endline 18.8 ± 2.9 mo) were assessed. Results : Intervention mothers’ KAP improved ( p <0.001) at midline and endline compared to that of the control group, as did frequency of pulse consumption and DDS among children. At 9 months, the prevalence of stunting, wasting, and underweight was significantly reduced in the intervention group compared to the control group ( p =0.001). Conclusions NE delivered by HEWs improved KAP of mothers regarding pulse consumption and dietary diversity of children led to improved nutritional status of the children. Training HEWs on the use of pulses for CF may be an effective way to improve the health of children in Ethiopian communities.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Mutagwanya ◽  
Christine Magala Nyago ◽  
Fredrick Nelson Nakwagala

Abstract Background: Consumption of a varied diet reduces the risk of developing a deficiency or excess of any one nutrient. One of the three corner stones of diabetes management is diet and therefore, dietary diversity is key among diabetes patients. Objective: The objective of this study was to establish the impact of nutrition education on the dietary diversity scores (DDS) among type 2 diabetes patients. Methods: Kant et al method was used for scoring dietary diversity. Data were analyzed using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS version 21). Pair sample t-test was used to compare total DDS after and before nutrition education. P< 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.Subjects: One hundred type 2 diabetic patients were randomly selected and divided into two groups of intervention and control (50 patients in each group) to participate in the study. Data were collected using a pre-tested questionnaire before and after intervention every after one month for a period of four months of intervention.Results: The average age of patients who participated in the study was 48 (40–51) years. Most of the patients were females (65.39%), compared to males (34.01%). At the end of the study period of four months, DDS in the control group decreased from 40.08% to 38.49% (p=0.064) while in the intervention group, DDS increased from 35.30 % to 54.20% (p<0.001). Conclusion: Dietary diversity increased after nutrition education among type 2 diabetes patients.Trial registration: The study was registered and approved on 17th April 2013 by the Research and Ethics committee of Mulago Hospital and Institutional Review Board of Mulago hospital (Protocol MREC 113).


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Getenesh Berhanu Teshome ◽  
Susan J. Whiting ◽  
Timothy J. Green ◽  
Demelash Mulualem ◽  
Carol J. Henry

Abstract Background Improving children's weight status through nutrition education (NE) for mothers about using pulses in complementary feeding has been demonstrated in pilot studies, but no effect on stunting was reported. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a 9-month pulse-nutrition education program on mothers' knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) towards pulses, as well as its impact on children's dietary diversity, and nutritional status. The NE was delivered by Health Extension Workers (HEWs). Methods A cluster randomized study was employed for the community-based interventional study. Twelve randomly selected villages in Sidama Zone, Southern Ethiopia were included in the study. A total of 772 mother-child pairs involved in the study; where 386 mother-child pairs in the intervention group received additional messages about pulse-cereal complementary food, and 386 pairs (the control) received only routine health education for 9 months. A survey on mothers’ KAP and anthropometric measurements of the children were taken at baseline, midline, and endline. Results At baseline and endline, maternal KAP and the dietary diversity score of the children (mean age at endline 18.8 ± 2.9 mo) were assessed. Results : Intervention mothers’ KAP improved ( p <0.001) at midline and endline compared to that of the control group, as did frequency of pulse consumption and DDS among children. At 9 months, the prevalence of stunting, wasting, and underweight was significantly reduced in the intervention group compared to the control group ( p =0.001). Conclusions NE delivered by HEWs improved KAP of mothers regarding pulse consumption and dietary diversity of children led to improved nutritional status of the children. Training HEWs on the use of pulses for CF may be an effective way to improve the health of children in Ethiopian communities.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 1287-1287
Author(s):  
Janet Antwi

Abstract Objectives Malnutrition among children, and adolescents remains a crucial public health concern in sub-Saharan Africa. Nutrition education contributes to acquisition of nutrition knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) which may lead to improved nutrition status and health, and brings greatest benefits to the poor and the most vulnerable particularly school-age children (SAC). We evaluated the impact of a 6-week nutrition education intervention on nutrition KAP, and nutrition status of SAC. The effect of nutrition education training on the knowledge of teachers and caregivers was also evaluated. Methods Pretest-posttest controlled design was used in elementary schools in Ghana. A total of 325 SAC 6–12 years old, 6 teachers and 99 caregivers completed the study. Nutrition KAP were estimated using a standardized questionnaire. Nutrition status was calculated using height and weight measurements. Results Schoolchildren in the intervention group had significantly higher knowledge scores (8.8 ± 2.0 vs. 5.9 ± 2.1, P &lt; 0.0001) compared to controls in lower elementary level. The attitude of children in learning about food and nutrition issues was a higher proportion in the intervention group as compared to control group (88% vs. 77%, P = 0.031). Dietary diversity score did not differ significantly between intervention and control groups (4.8 ± 2.0 vs. 5.1 ± 1.4, P = 0.184). Intervention group had a marginally lower proportion of stunted SAC at the end of the study period as compared to control group (3.6% vs. 8.2%, P = 0.080). The nutrition knowledge of teachers, and caregivers significantly improved (12.5 ± 1.87 vs. 9.2 ± 2.1; P = 0.031) and (5.85 ± 0.73 to 6.29 ± 1.02, P = 0.009), respectively. Conclusions Nutrition education could have positive effects for passing on nutrition knowledge, and attitudes to elementary school children which are essential to developing healthy behaviors, and managing nutrition status. Funding Sources This study was funded by the Institute of International Education with award of the Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship Program.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Getenesh Berhanu Teshome ◽  
Susan J. Whiting ◽  
Timothy J. Green ◽  
Demelash Mulualem ◽  
Carol J. Henry

Abstract Background Improving children's weight status through nutrition education (NE) for mothers about using pulses in complementary feeding has been demonstrated in pilot studies, but no effect on stunting was reported. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a 9-month pulse-nutrition education program on mothers' knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) towards pulses, as well as its impact on children's dietary diversity, and nutritional status. The NE was delivered by Health Extension Workers (HEWs). Methods A cluster randomized study was employed for the community-based interventional study. Twelve randomly selected villages in Sidama Zone, Southern Ethiopia were included in the study. A total of 772 mother-child pairs involved in the study; where 386 mother-child pairs in the intervention group received additional messages about pulse-cereal complementary food, and 386 pairs (the control) received only routine health education for 9 months. A survey on mothers’ KAP and anthropometric measurements of the children were taken at baseline, midline, and endline. Results At baseline and endline, maternal KAP and the dietary diversity score of the children (mean age at endline 18.8 ± 2.9 mo) were assessed. Results : Intervention mothers’ KAP improved ( p <0.001) at midline and endline compared to that of the control group, as did frequency of pulse consumption and DDS among children. At 9 months, the prevalence of stunting, wasting, and underweight was significantly reduced in the intervention group compared to the control group ( p =0.001). Conclusions NE delivered by HEWs improved KAP of mothers regarding pulse consumption and dietary diversity of children led to improved nutritional status of the children. Training HEWs on the use of pulses for CF may be an effective way to improve the health of children in Ethiopian communities.


1970 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Romedan Delil ◽  
Dessalegn Tamiru ◽  
Beakal Zinab

BACKGROUND: Anemia is a major public health problem among pregnant women in developing countries like Ethiopia. Nutritional deficiency related to anemia is an important contributor to maternal mortality and poor fetal outcomes.METHODS: Institution based cross-sectional study was conducted among pregnant women to assess the prevalence of anemia and its association with dietary diversity in Hossana Town from March 15 to April 30, 2017. Systematic random sampling procedure was employed to select 314 study subjects. Data were collected using an interviewer administered semi-structured questionnaire supplemented with laboratory tests. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine the independent predictors of anemia.RESULTS: The prevalence of mild to moderate anemia among pregnant women was 56.6% and 40.8% respectively. The mean dietary diversity and food variety score of study participants were 7 and 22 respectively. Maternal education (AOR=10.5; 95% CI:2.2, 27), occupation of spouse (AOR=9.3; 95% CI:1.6, 53), nutrition education (AOR=2.5; 95% CI:1.5, 6.4) and dietary diversity (AOR=18.6; 95% CI: 4.4, 28) were significantly associated with anemia.CONCLUSION: Anemia was found to be a moderate public health problem in Hossana Town. Therefore, there is a need of nutrition education and promotion awareness on healthy diets to prevent anemia among pregnant women. 


10.37512/700 ◽  
2020 ◽  

Poor quality complementary foods contribute to undernutrition in children aged 6-23 months. Therefore, there is need to explore foods that will provide adequate nutrients for this age group. This study aimed at determining the impact of a sorghum-amaranth composite flour porridge on nutrient intake of children aged 6-23 months. A randomized controlled trial was conducted at Kiandutu slum, Thika, Kenya. Children in the control group (CG), received a maize-sorghum flour while those in the treatment group (TG) received an amaranth-sorghum flour. The sample size per study group was 73 mother-child pairs. The children in the TG received Kcal 1000 worth of porridge/day while those in the CG received Kcal 266.8/day. Mothers of children in both groups were given nutrition education at baseline, and monthly, for six months. Food intake data was taken at baseline, then monthly for six months. Descriptive statistics were used to describe nutrient intake. Chi square and Mann Whitney U test were was used to compare the baseline characteristics of the two groups and their nutrient intake, respectively. At baseline characteristics of the two groups were similar. On a monthly basis, nutrient intake in the TG was significantly higher for a majority of the nutrients than in the CG. The product can contribute to preventing under-nutrition in children aged 6-23 months.


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