Browsing by Author "Msuya, J. M"

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Nutritianal status, functional ability and food habits of institutionalised non- institutionalised elderly people in Morogoro region, Tanzania.
(East African Medical Journal, 2004-05-05) Nyaruhucha, C. N. M; Msuya, J. M; Matrida, E
To determine nutritional status, food habits and functional abilities of the institutionalised and non-institutionalised elderly. Design: A cross-sectional population survey. Setting: Free living and institutionalised elderly of Morogoro municipality, Tanzania. Subjects: A total of 100 elderly people, fifty institutionalised and fifty non-institutionalised were included. Gender distribution was of equal numbers. Measurements: Anthropometric measurements of weights and heights were taken to enable calculation of Body Mass Index (BMI) of each subject. Questionnaires were used to collect information on types of foods, amount and frequency of consumption and functional abilities of the elderly. Amount of food consumed was expressed in grams per person per day. Results: There were significant differences (p=0.001) in nutritional status between the institutionalised and the non- institutionalised males, but this relationship did not exist among the females. Similarly, 30% and 26% of the institutionalised males and females, respectively, and none of the non- institutionalised males was observed to be overweight. On the other hand, 39% and 23% of the non-institutionalised males and females, respectively, were underweight or malnourished. Consumption of sardines was higher (p=0.05) among the institutionalised subjects, but the situation was opposite for the case of fruits. Alcohol consumption was higher (p<0.05) among non- institutionalised subjects in both sexes. No difference was noted in consumption of beans, vegetables, cereals and meat. The most common functional disability was urinary incontinence (36%) while feeding (5%) was the least common. The most affected by urinary incontinence were institutionalised male subjects. Conclusion: There was a great variation between elderly people who are cared for in institutional centres and those who are cared for by their relatives in terms of nutritional status, reflected by their BMI levels. The institutionalised ones appear to be better off than their counterparts. However, this condition is not equally reflected in their eating habits. Generally, most of the elderly have poor or no source of income, which make them to have poor living conditions. They are also faced with problems of functional disabilities of which urinary incontinence was more common among males.
Sensory evaluation of different preparations of cassava leaves from three species as a leafy vegetable
(African Journal of Biotechnology, 2013-11-13) Umuhozariho, M. G; Shayo, N. B; Sallah, P. Y. K; Msuya, J. M
Cassava leaves are largely consumed in Africa and are among the top three African indigenous vegetables rich in nutrients. Leaves from bitter (Manihot utilissima), sweet (Manihot dulcis) and wild (Manihot glaziovii) species of cassava were cooked by boiling in salted (sodium bicarbonate and table salt) water with the addition of palm oil and ground-nut paste, following processing by “pounding”, “pounding and then drying” and, “drying and then pounding”. The drying was done in tunnel solar drier at temperature of 65°C on average. Nine samples (three species x three processing methods) were evaluated by 31 panelists, using a five point hedonic scale, where 5 = like very much and 1= dislike very much. Cassava species affected significantly (p = 0.0047; 0.0206) scoring for texture and overall acceptability, respectively, but not for colour, aroma and taste. Processing method highly significantly (p< 0.0001) affected all the sensory attributes scoring. Leaves from all three species were liked as leafy vegetable, except when pounded after drying.
Utilization of cassava leaves as a vegetable in Rwanda
(Rwanda Journal, 2011) Umuhozariho, M. G; Shayo, N.B; Msuya, J. M; Sallah, P. Y. K
Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) leaves is an important vegetable in Rwanda. The objectives of this study were to determine cassava species from which leaves are harvested as vegetable and identify leaf preparation methods, consumption rate, price variation, storability and perception of post-harvest losses. A pre-tested structured questionnaire with closed and open-ended questions was administered to stratified groups of cassava leaves producers and consumers in four purposively selected sectors of Ruhango District and retailers in the main markets of Ruhango and Kigali city. In total, 171 respondents were interviewed from 11 to 26 August 2011. Cassava leaves are highly consumed in Ruhango District as 96.0 % of families harvested leaves for food. On average, 17.5 % of farmers sell cassava leaves that are retailed in markets of towns and cities including Kigali City. Sweet (Manihot dulcis), bitter (Manihot utilissima) and wild (Manihot glaziovii) are the cassava species from which leaves are consumed as vegetable, but the leaves of wild cassava are preferred by 66.0 % of consumers. Prices of cassava leaves varied significantly (p=0.0182) according to season with higher prices in the dry than rainy season. Prices of leaves at farm gate and retail levels were highly different (p= 0.0016), averaging 32 and 65 Frw by bunch in the rainy season, respectively. Despite the high consumption and trade of cassava leaves, post-harvest losses were high, especially in the rainy season. Cassava leaves were mainly cooked fresh, but 15.4 % of households processed leaves by sun drying. The storage period was extended to two months by sun-drying. In each case and, prior to cooking, cassava leaves were pounded. Cassava leaves are considered as a favourite and nutritive vegetable and technologies to improve storability, value and trade are needed. Assessment of effects of processing on nutritional quality and safety is also important