Dietary Practices and Nutrition Status of People Living with HIV/AIDS Aged 18-55 Years Attending Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital, Kisii County

Abstract

Introduction infection and malnutrition are strongly linked and highly prevalent in Sub-Saharan Africa. Nutrition is a key component of comprehensive care for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). A varied and healthy diet has been strongly associated with nutrient adequacy and delay in HIV/AIDS progression. Objective: This study aimed to assess dietary practices and nutrition status among adult HIV/AIDS patients aged 18-55 years old, attending a comprehensive care center (CCC), at Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital (KTRH), Kenya. Methodology: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 68 study participants randomly selected. A structured interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 24.0 statistical software. Results: A total of 68 study participants were included in the analysis and 64.7% were female. The majority of the participants (42.7%) were between 19 – 31 years of age. Nearly two thirds (61.8%) of the respondents consumed three meals a day, and a quarter (25%) consumed less than three meals a day. The majority of the respondents consumed cereals/cereal products more than any other food group. The prevalence of undernutrition was 7.4%, overweight was 25% and 14.7% were obese. Conclusion and Recommendation: These results could be a reflection the nutritional transition Kenya is experiencing, predisposing PLWHA to cardio-metabolic risk factors. These results highlight the need to strengthen community nutrition programmes to further improve accessibility and availability of affordable varied and sustainable healthy diet to better health for PLWHA. Keywords: Dietary practices, food consumption patterns, nutritional status, PLWHA, Kenya