Malnutrition Of School-age Children Research Articles

Factors Associated with Anthropometric Status of Primary School Children in Dodoma, Tanzaniaania

Background: Malnutrition in school-age children significantly affects their health, cognitive development, and educational attainment. This study aimed to assess the nutritional status of school-age children and the influence of socioeconomic, demographic, and environmental factors on their nutritional well-being. This study focused on primary focus was on primary school children in Dodoma. sought to identify children who could be at risk of malnutrition. The study intended to establish baseline data regarding the nutritional status of school children that could contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the nutritional landscape among primary school children in the region. This information could subsequently inform nutritionists and policymakers to plan interventions to improve these children's nutritional status. Methods: A cross-sectional study involving 248 pupils was conducted in eight primary schools in Dodoma. Four schools were selected from Chamwino and Dodoma urban districts, respectively, whereby two government schools and two private schools were selected from each district. The other four schools were situated in the urban district of Dodoma, comprising two government and two private schools. The study assessed the prevalence of stunting, wasting/thinness, underweight, and overweight/obesity among primary school children. Stunting was characterized by impaired growth and development with low height for age, while underweight was defined as low weight relative to age. Wasting/thinness refers to insufficient flesh, with body weight falling below skeletal and physical standards. Overweight/obese indicates excessive fat tissue accumulation that could impact health. Data were analyzed using the WHO AnthroPlus v1.0.4 software and SPSS v26 software for Windows. Results: Prevalence rates among the surveyed pupils were as follows: stunting (10.5%), underweight (3.6%), thinness (2.8%), and overweight/obesity (10.1%). Stunting was more prevalent in boys (13.2%) than in girls (8.2%), and it exhibited an upward trend with increasing age. The prevalence of underweight was higher in public schools (8.2%) compared to private schools (3.2%). Thinness was more common in public schools (85.7%) compared to private schools (14.3%) and was more prevalent in rural areas (57.1%) and among younger children (57.1%). Overweight/obesity was more prevalent among girls (91.0%) compared to boys (88.6%). Schools in urban areas showed a higher prevalence of overweight/obesity (90.3%) than those in rural areas (89.5%). Private schools (95.2%) had a higher prevalence of overweight/obese pupils compared to public schools (84.7%). Pupils residing in urban areas were more likely to become overweight/obese compared to their counterparts living in rural settings. Conclusion: Significant rates of stunting, thinness, underweight, and overweight/obesity were observed among primary schoolchildren in Dodoma, Tanzania. These findings underlined the necessity to enhance nutrition interventions to improve the nutritional status of both public and private primary school pupils in Tanzania.

Research on the Correlation Between Anemia and Chronic Malnutrition in School-Age Children in Rural Areas of the Toumodi Health District in Côte d’Ivoire

Introduction: Anemia and chronic malnutrition are widespread in sub-Saharan Africa and constitute public health problems. This study was carried out to assess the association between chronic malnutrition and anemia in rural school-age children. Method: This is a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study carried out in the Toumodi health district in central Côte d’Ivoire. Study subjects were selected from children aged 6 to 15 years from rural school areas, according to inclusion and exclusion criteria, resulting in a sample of 588 pupils. The study was carried out in two stages: - The first step was to screen all consenting children for anemia using a Hemocue ®-System. - The second step was to collect anthropometric and biological data: the result of the presence of the malaria parasite in the blood by malaria test and the presence of helminths in the stools. Data entry and statistical analysis were carried out using Excel and SPSS version 12.0 software respectively. Results: Chronic malnutrition (weight-by-age) accounted for 22.4% of children, while the prevalence of anemia was 70.7%. The percentage of children with a positive malaria test was 57.5%. Helminths were observed in the stools of 52.8% of children. Anemia was correlated with chronic malnutrition and malaria. Moreover, chronically malnourished children were about twice (OR = 1.81) as likely to develop anemia as those who were not. Conclusion: This study revealed a strong association between chronic malnutrition and anemia.

THE INFLUENCE OF PERSONAL HYGIENE PUZZLE MEDIA WASHING HANDS WITH SOAP ON STUDENTS' KNOWLEDGE OF SDN 6 PARAKAN KAUMAN TEMANGGUNG

Background : Diarrhea is still a global problem today and is still a serious concern from various countries. This was reported in the World Health Organization (WHO) which describes cases of diarrhea in the world in 2017 stating that there are nearly 1.7 billion cases of diarrheal disease that occur in children with 525,000 deaths every year worldwide. The occurrence of diarrhea will cause children to lose the nutrients that children need for growth and development, so diarrhea is the main cause of malnutrition in school-age children. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that washing hands with soap can reduce diarrhea rates by up to 47%.
 Purpose : Analyzing the effect of personal hygiene puzzle media washing hands with soap on students' knowledge of SDN 6 Parakan Kauman Temanggung
 Research Method: Pre-experimental design with one group pre-post test. The sampling technique used total sampling, namely 29 students at SDN 6 Parakan. Data analysis with Wilcoxon test
 Research result : The majority of respondents' knowledge before being given puzzle media was in the good category, namely 15 (51.7%) respondents, while after giving puzzle media, the majority were good, namely 22 (75.9%) respondents. The results of the Wilcoxon test found a p value of 0.000 <0.05 meaning that there was an effect of giving hand washing personal hygiene puzzle media with knowledge to elementary school students in Temanggung
 Conclusions and recommendations : Giving puzzle media can affect students' knowledge about personal hygiene hand washing. It is hoped that the hand washing puzzle media can be used as a medium in increasing student knowledge

Soil-transmitted helminth infections and nutritional status in Ecuador: findings from a national survey and implications for control strategies

ObjectiveThe estimation of prevalence and intensity of soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections at a country-level is an essential prerequisite for the implementation of a rational control programme. The aim of this...

The Relationship Between Nutritional Status and Some Socio-Economic Factors in Primary School Children in Shiraz, Iran

Background: The worldwide prevalence of malnutrition which is the root cause of many health problems, and presented as underweight and overweight, has increased in past decades. Therefore efforts are required to prevent malnutrition and its associated complications. Objectives: The present study aimed to assess the relationship between nutritional status and some socio-economic factors in elementary school children in Shiraz, Iran. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 740 primary school students in Shiraz selected through cluster random sampling. The data consisted of personal characteristics, including demographic features, education grade, height, weight, birth order, number of children in the family, parents’ age, parents’ education levels, parents’ occupation, immigration history, divorce, birth weight, breastfeeding period, birth season, history of obesity in the first degree relative, sleep duration, time spent on watching TV, using computer, and playing video games, eating meal and pre-meal patterns, and economic status. Besides, the students’ Body Mass Indices (BMI, weight (kg)/height × height (m 2)) were measured in order to determine student’s percentiles. Results: The study results revealed that 73 (9.9%), 524 (70.8%), 101 (13.6%), and 42 (5.7%) students were underweight, normal, overweight, and obese, respectively. Among the evaluated factors, only mid-afternoon meal was significantly related to nutritional status. In comparison to having more than two pre-meals a day, not consuming afternoon pre-meal increased the chance of being underweight by about 10.1 folds. Moreover, the chance of being underweight increased in children who did not consume afternoon pre-meal due to less energy intake. Conclusions: This study revealed a high prevalence of malnutrition among the primary school students. Yet, further studies are required to accurately identify the effective factors for prevention and treatment of malnutrition in school age children.

Assessment of selenium nutritional status of school-age children from rural areas of China in 2002 and 2012.

To assess the selenium nutritional status of 3458 school-age children recruited from rural areas using the China Nutrition and Health Survey 2002 and 2012 (CNHS 2002 and CNHS 2012). The serum selenium concentration was determined by high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The prevalence of dietary selenium intake insufficiency was calculated according to the formula suggested by and the estimated average requirements of the new Chinese Dietary Reference Intakes. The percentage of low selenium was based on the cutoff values with a serum selenium concentration below the threshold limit of clinical importance in coronary and cardiovascular diseases (<45 μg/l) and in abnormal physiological functions (<60 μg/l). The overall median serum selenium concentration was 64.3 μg/l in the CNHS 2002 and 74.2 μg/l in the CNHS 2012. The median calculated dietary selenium intake was 26.7 μg/day in the CNHS 2002 and 33.2 μg/day in the CNHS 2012 together with a 61.1% and 52.8% dietary selenium intake insufficiency in the CNHS 2002 and in the CNHS 2012. In addition, the percentages of low selenium (<45 μg/l and <60 μg/l) were 25.1 and 43.8% in the CNHS 2002 but 9.4 and 25.6% in the CHNS 2012. The selenium nutritional status of school-age children was significantly improved in the CNHS 2012 versus the CNHS 2002. However, the health risk for selenium malnutrition in school-age children remains a potential problem affecting children's health.

Parasite risk factors for stunting in grade 5 students in a community of extreme poverty in Peru

Malnutrition in school-age children is common in developing countries and includes both stunting and underweight. Stunting, which represents a chronic state of nutritional stress, leads to adverse health, educational and cognitive effects. Although much research is focused on preschool-age children, recent studies show both the high prevalence of stunting and the effectiveness of interventions in school-age children. The objectives of the current study were to determine the risk factors for stunting only, and stunting and underweight. A survey was conducted in 1074 grade 5 children (mean age 10 years) from 17 schools in Belen, Peru, a community of extreme poverty. Prevalence of underweight and stunting were 10.5 and 34.5%, respectively, co-prevalence was 9.3%. Based on multivariable logistic regression analyses, significant independent risk factors (odds ratio: OR) for stunting and underweight were: age (per 1 year increment) (OR=1.55; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.33, 1.81); diarrhoea in the last week (OR=1.96; 95% CI: 1.17, 3.29) and hookworm infection (OR=1.74; 95% CI: 1.05, 2.86). Significant independent risk factors for stunting only were: age (per 1 year increment) (OR=1.51; 95% CI: 1.35, 1.70); anaemia (OR=1.98; 95% CI: 1.26, 3.11); and moderate and heavy Trichuris and Ascaris co-infection (OR=1.95; 95% CI: 1.35, 2.82). Our results indicate a high prevalence of stunting, in addition to other adverse health indicators, in the study population. Due to the interrelation between many of these health and nutrition problems, interventions at both the school and community levels, including de-worming, feeding programs and health and hygiene education, are needed to reduce malnutrition in this and other similar populations living in conditions of extreme poverty.