Impact of Household Water Treatment and Safe Storage in Reducing Diarrheal Morbidity among Under-Fives in Kawangware, Nairobi County

Abstract

Diarrheal diseases are one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality in developing countries particularly in children. Unsafe drinking water, along with poor sanitation and hygiene, are the main contributors to an estimated 4 billion cases of diarrheal diseases annually, causing more than 1.5 million deaths, mostly among children less than five years of age. This study took the form of a cross-sectional study to determine the impact of Point of Use (POU) water treatment and storage practices in reduction of diarrheal morbidity among a target population of children of between 0-59 months. The study setting was Kawangware sub-location, Kawangware Location, Dagoretti Sub County in Nairobi County, while the study respondents were parents of children below the age of 59 months. Three study objectives namely: Households’ perception on point of use water treatment practices, households’ methods of POU water treatment, as well as households’ water storages practices and their impact on diarrheal morbidity among children under- five years of age were assessed. From the study findings, it was evident that households’ perception on quality of their drinking water affected uptake of POU (p=0.839, 99% CI), and that households that treated their drinking water at point had lower incidences of diarrhea (p= -0.914, 99% CI) among children under the age of five. Additionally, A strong positive relationship (p=0. 614, 99% CI) was realized between method of POU water treatment and diarrhea prevalence among children under five years. Lastly, a weak positive association was found between the method of water extraction from storage container and (p= -0.177, 99% CI). Based on study findings the researcher concludes that point of use water treatment significantly reduces diarrhea morbidly among children under the age of five years, and therefore recommends that households with children under the age of five should take up the practice.