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Background: Under nutrition among children is a major public concern worldwide, more prevalent in Asia and Africa. Prevalence in Tanzania between 1999 and 2010, child underweight fell from 29% to 21%, child stunting fell from 44 to 35%, and child wasting fell from 5% to 4%.This progress is believed to be largely due to a reduction in the prevalence of malaria and not a result of nutrition interventions. Under nutrition is still widely prevalent in Tanzania. In Kilimanjaro high rates of stunting (44.2%) and underweight (19.1%) were observed.
Aims/objectives: To identify factors associated with stunting among under-five children in Kahe ward.
Methodology: This was a Cross sectional household based study which was conducted among children under-five years of age in the year 2015.The study population included all children under-five years in Kahe ward during the time of data collection of the study. The minimum sample size required was 374. The hamlet as primary sampling units (PSU) to be included in the survey was selected using probability proportional to size (PPS) approach. A minimal of 600 households was assumed to be adequate to detect error of 5% (95% CI). A systematic random sampling method was used to select households from each stratum hamlets.
Results: Out of all participants 103(36%) are malnourished with high prevalence of stunting 82 (29%). Underweight and wasting is 14(5%) and 7(2%) respectively. Children aged 24-35months have highest odds of stunting than other age groups. Girls 45(30.4%) are observed to be more affected than boys 36(25.9%). Age group of 24-35months (p=0.03) , immunization (measles) (p=0.04) and deworming (p=0.03) are identified as significant factors associated with stunting.
Conclusion: The prevalence of under nutrition among children under-five in Kahe ward is still high compared to regional prevalence. This emphasizes that under nutrition is still a major public health problem. It poses a challenge for future intervention especially in children’s height growth.
Keywords: Under nutrition, stunting, wasting, underweight, children under-five, Tanzania. |
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