Assessment of Nutritional Status Among Children Under Five Years of Age Hospitalized at Sengerema District Hospital and Factors Associated With It.
Kopela, Willy CUHAS/MD/4001308/T/14
Assessment of Nutritional Status Among Children Under Five Years of Age Hospitalized at Sengerema District Hospital and Factors Associated With It. - Mwanza, Tanzania: Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences [CUHAS – Bugando] : ©2019 - xiv; 48 Pages Includes References
Abstract:
Background: Malnutrition has long been associated with poverty, poor diet and inadequate access to health care, and it remains a key global health issue that both stems from and contributes to ill-health, with 50% of childhood deaths due to underlying under nutrition. Children less than five years of age are the most vulnerable to diseases and malnutrition. Therefore, appropriate multidisplinary approach on nutrition education, environmental sanitation and hygiene practices at family and community level are needed.
Objective: Assessment of nutritional status among children under five years of age hospitalized at Sengerema district hospital and factors associated with it.
Methods: A cross sectional study using quantitative method was conducted from September 2018 – February 2019 at Sengerema district hospital. 386 children under five years of age were recruited. A sample random method was applied to identify the study participants. Data was collected using a pre-tested questionnaire to obtain information. Data analysis was done using statistical package for social sciences version 20. Descriptive analysis was done with frequencies and summary statistics.
Results: It has found 116 (30.5%) of males and 118 (31.0%) of females had normal nutritional status, but 61 (15.9%) of males and 73 (19.1%) of females were moderately undernourished, 41 (1.0%) of males and 10 (2.5%) of females were severely undernourished. Of the all examined children, 270 (70.8%) had normal nutritional status, 64 (16.8%) were moderately stunted, 14 (3.6%) were severely stunted. 313 (82%) children had normal nutritional status while 4 (0.8%) were overweight for their heights, 54 (14%) of children were moderately wasted and 12 (3.2%) were severely wasted. Many factors have found to affect nutritional status as following.
About 93.8% of mothers of whom their children hospitalized at Sengerema hospital denied existence of food taboos while 6.2% of mothers said there were a food taboos against their children. 2.6% of children eat once per day, 7.6% of children eat twice per day, 63.9% of children eat three time per day, and 23.6% of children eat four times a day while the rest 9% of children eat more than four per day.
Among 382 mothers, 50.3% of them said they don’t know about malnutrition while the rest 49.7% of them said they have knowledge of malnutrition. About effects of disease to the children, 44.8% of mothers mentioned fever, 6.8% of mother mentioned diarrhea, 12% of mothers mentioned cough, 36.4% of mothers mentioned malaria. Also 32.7% of mothers reported to start the weaning process when their child had five months of age, 39.5% of them reported to start at the age of six months, 14.7 of them reported to start at the age of seven months, 9.2% of them started at the age of eight months, while the rest 3.9% reported to start the weaning process at the age of below five months.
Conclusion: The study has revealed that malnutrition under five children is an important public problem. Several factors appeared to influence the resulting nutritional status such as food taboos, infections, feeding practices as well as mother’s education especially about malnutrition. Therefore there is a great need to undertake interventions to rescue the situation by both the government as well as the civic organizations. It is recommended that the interventions should mostly take the form of education to educate the community members especially women on relevant nutrition knowledge.
Wurzburg Road 35, BMC Premises, Post Code: 33102: P. O. Box 1464, Mwanza – Tanzania: Phone: +255 28 298 3384: Fax: +255 28 298 3386: Email: vc@bugando.ac.tz: www.bugando.ac.tz
--Pediatrics and Child Health
Assessment of Nutritional Status Among Children Under Five Years of Age Hospitalized at Sengerema District Hospital and Factors Associated With It. - Mwanza, Tanzania: Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences [CUHAS – Bugando] : ©2019 - xiv; 48 Pages Includes References
Abstract:
Background: Malnutrition has long been associated with poverty, poor diet and inadequate access to health care, and it remains a key global health issue that both stems from and contributes to ill-health, with 50% of childhood deaths due to underlying under nutrition. Children less than five years of age are the most vulnerable to diseases and malnutrition. Therefore, appropriate multidisplinary approach on nutrition education, environmental sanitation and hygiene practices at family and community level are needed.
Objective: Assessment of nutritional status among children under five years of age hospitalized at Sengerema district hospital and factors associated with it.
Methods: A cross sectional study using quantitative method was conducted from September 2018 – February 2019 at Sengerema district hospital. 386 children under five years of age were recruited. A sample random method was applied to identify the study participants. Data was collected using a pre-tested questionnaire to obtain information. Data analysis was done using statistical package for social sciences version 20. Descriptive analysis was done with frequencies and summary statistics.
Results: It has found 116 (30.5%) of males and 118 (31.0%) of females had normal nutritional status, but 61 (15.9%) of males and 73 (19.1%) of females were moderately undernourished, 41 (1.0%) of males and 10 (2.5%) of females were severely undernourished. Of the all examined children, 270 (70.8%) had normal nutritional status, 64 (16.8%) were moderately stunted, 14 (3.6%) were severely stunted. 313 (82%) children had normal nutritional status while 4 (0.8%) were overweight for their heights, 54 (14%) of children were moderately wasted and 12 (3.2%) were severely wasted. Many factors have found to affect nutritional status as following.
About 93.8% of mothers of whom their children hospitalized at Sengerema hospital denied existence of food taboos while 6.2% of mothers said there were a food taboos against their children. 2.6% of children eat once per day, 7.6% of children eat twice per day, 63.9% of children eat three time per day, and 23.6% of children eat four times a day while the rest 9% of children eat more than four per day.
Among 382 mothers, 50.3% of them said they don’t know about malnutrition while the rest 49.7% of them said they have knowledge of malnutrition. About effects of disease to the children, 44.8% of mothers mentioned fever, 6.8% of mother mentioned diarrhea, 12% of mothers mentioned cough, 36.4% of mothers mentioned malaria. Also 32.7% of mothers reported to start the weaning process when their child had five months of age, 39.5% of them reported to start at the age of six months, 14.7 of them reported to start at the age of seven months, 9.2% of them started at the age of eight months, while the rest 3.9% reported to start the weaning process at the age of below five months.
Conclusion: The study has revealed that malnutrition under five children is an important public problem. Several factors appeared to influence the resulting nutritional status such as food taboos, infections, feeding practices as well as mother’s education especially about malnutrition. Therefore there is a great need to undertake interventions to rescue the situation by both the government as well as the civic organizations. It is recommended that the interventions should mostly take the form of education to educate the community members especially women on relevant nutrition knowledge.
Wurzburg Road 35, BMC Premises, Post Code: 33102: P. O. Box 1464, Mwanza – Tanzania: Phone: +255 28 298 3384: Fax: +255 28 298 3386: Email: vc@bugando.ac.tz: www.bugando.ac.tz
--Pediatrics and Child Health