Abstract
Nutrition is a very important component for the growth and development of any society, specifically for the prevention and control of a range of diseases. In Tanzania, despite a great variability of nutrition status by different characteristics, generally the majority of the populations have poor nutrition. Kagera is among the 26 regions of mainland Tanzania with a total projected population of about 2.5 million. The nutrition status among residents is poor with multifactorial determinants. In this paper, we present qualitative data collected using in-depth interviews with key adult men and women informants in the four Tanzania-Uganda border districts. The main objective was to establish possible causes of the reported low nutrition in Kagera Region. Majority of study participants were affirmative of the availability and plenty of food; the main problem being poor dietary diversification knowledge, attitudes, skills, and practices. They recommend various measures that could improve the current nutrition status. These measures include nutrition education at primary, secondary and tertiary levels; health education at health facility level that will include nutrition topics and peer education at community level; introduction of nutrition bylaws in the community and vitalizing peer education social groups among males and females about the importance of dietary diversification. Therefore, future nutrition research should include culture, religion, and traditional indicators to inform food and nutrition interventions and policy in similar populations to the Tanzania-Uganda borderlanders.
Highlights
Available literature indicate that Tanzanians’ nutrition status is generally poor [1]-[9]
We present and discuss one factor, lack of dietary diversification knowledge, skills, and practices to prepare balanced meals, perceived by study participants’ cardinal for malnutrition status recorded among residents of the Kagera border region
The reanalysis of data indicated that majority of study participants mentioned, poor dietary diversification knowledge, skills, and practices of available food to prepare balanced meals, a key factor for malnutrition status reported among their communities’ members
Summary
Available literature indicate that Tanzanians’ nutrition status is generally poor [1]-[9]. Malnutrition (wasting, stunting and underweight), primarily affecting infants, young children and women of reproductive age, is widely spread and remains a key public health concern [9]-[13]. It is reported, 57% of babies 0-6 months are not exclusively breast-fed for 6 months, 57% of children under-five years are anemic, 45% of women of reproductive age (15-49 years) are anemic and 37% of urban women aged 15-49 years are overweight [14]. Cameron [5] reported that “about 3 million children under the age of five years are affected Such a high incidence means that Tanzania has the third largest number of children who are stunted in Africa”
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