Nutritional status and personal hygiene practices of primary school children: A cross-sectional study from Meghalaya, India

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Background:Poor nutritional status in primary school children can lead to several health problems such as easy susceptibility to common childhood diseases. Personal hygiene status is an important predictor of nutritional status and morbidity in children as water- and sanitation-related diseases are the leading causes of early morbidity and mortality in children. The present study was conducted to assess the nutritional status as well as personal hygiene practices of primary school going children.Method:The present study was a cross-sectional study conducted in selected urban and rural areas of Shillong in children 6–12 years of age. Two schools each from the rural and urban area were selected using simple random sampling. The total sample size calculated was 510. Height, weight, and BMI were taken for all the children following the standard procedures. WHO growth standards were used for grading of nutritional status. A questionnaire with scores was used for grading of personal hygiene status.Results:The overall prevalence of underweight in the children of 6–9 years was 74 (18.7%) and that of stunting was 68 (17.2%). The overall prevalence of thinness and stunting in children aged 10–12 was 38 (19.1%) and 46 (23.2%). The prevalence of nutritional deficiency syndromes was 192 (32.4%). Regarding the personal hygiene status, it was observed that 65 (11%) had very good personal hygiene, 292 (49.3%) were labeled as good, 200 (33.8%) were average, and 35 (5.9%) had poor personal hygiene.Conclusion:The primary school going children in Shillong had poor nutritional status but the majority of them had good personal hygiene practices. Mother's educational status played an important role in determining the nutritional and personal hygiene status of the children.