Knowledge of aflatoxin contamination in groundnut and the risk of its ingestion among health workers in Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract

Objective To assess the awareness and knowledge of aflatoxin contamination in groundnut and the risk of its ingestion among health workers in Ibadan. Methods The study was a descriptive cross-sectional study. Study instrument was a semi-structured self administered questionnaire. The respondents were health workers from a public health facility. Results A total of 417 health workers participated out of which males were 60.2%. The mean age of respondents was (28.0+4.9)years old. Doctors made up 83.0% while others were nurses. 95% of the respondents had previous awareness of aflatoxin and class room lectures was the most common source of information (56%). Occupation and religion both showed a significant association with previous awareness of aflatoxin ( P < 0.05). Knowledge regarding aflatoxin contamination in groundnut and the risk of its ingestion was obtained showing knowledge score range of 0 to 14. In all, 80.6% had good scores of 11 to 14. None of the respondents had ever told their patients about the risk of aflatoxin ingestion. Conclusions There is a need to explore the possibility of incorporating aflatoxin awareness into routine health talk to increase the level of awareness of patients and their relatives.