M.Sc. Dissertation
Undernutrition is a big challenge in the world though the rate of stunting has been
decreasing in the past two decades. Most of undernourished children are in developing
countries, comprising about one quarter of all stunted children in the world. The aim of
this study was to investigate the influence of child care practices on the nutritional status
of under five children in Ileje district, Songwe region, Tanzania. A cross sectional study
involving of 365 children aged 0 - 59 months were assessed to determine their
anthropometric measurements WAZ, HAZ and WHZ. A structured questionnaire was
administered to collect data on childcare practices and demographic information from the
caregivers/mothers. Data were coded and analyzed by ENA and Statistical Product for
Social Services (SPSS) program, version 16. Results showed that, 33.4% of the children
were stunted, 10.7% were underweight while 1.1% of the children were wasted.
Multivariate analysis was done to find association between childcare practices and
nutritional status. Feeding styles of the children, individual dietary diversity score,
caregiver’s/mother’s ability to read and write, source of drinking water and participation in
community organizations/social programs by the mother/caregiver were strongly
associated (p = 0.05) with undernutrition. A standard multiple regression model analysis
was done to find the factors that were strong predictors of the dependent variables. Factors
which were strong predictors of stunting (low HAZ) were poor breastfeeding practices
while recognition of child fullness during feeding by the mother/caregiver was a strong
predictor for child underweight (low WAZ). Presence of chicken around the premises was
a strong predictor for wasting (low WHZ) among children under the age of five years. It
was concluded from this study that poor child care practices have positive influence on the
anthropometric status of underfive children. It was recommended based on this study that
Nutrition intervention programs which emphasizing positive social behavior change on
childcare practices through nutrition education should be introduced in the community to
cover all beneficiaries.