Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2015 Nov 18:22:255.
doi: 10.11604/pamj.2015.22.255.7121. eCollection 2015.

Effect of community level intervention on nutritional status and feeding practices of under five children in Ile Ife, Nigeria

Olorunfemi Akinbode Ogundele  1 , Tolulope Ogundele  2
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Effect of community level intervention on nutritional status and feeding practices of under five children in Ile Ife, Nigeria

Olorunfemi Akinbode Ogundele et al. Pan Afr Med J. .

Abstract

Introduction: Childhood malnutrition remains a widespread problem in developing world like Nigeria. The country ranks second among the ten countries contributing to sixty percent of the world's wasted under-five children. Community Integrated Management of Childhood illness (CIMCI) is a programme that employs the use of community based counsellors to address child health and nutritional challenges of the under-five and has the potential to reduce the morbidity and mortality resulting from poor nutritional and feeding practices. The study assessed the effect of community level intervention on nutritional status and feeding practices of children in Ile-Ife, Nigeria.

Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study that employed the use of multi stage cluster sampling techniques in selecting 722 mothers of index under five children. The study was done in two Local Government Areas of Osun State, Nigeria. Quantitative techniques were used in data collection. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 20.0. Descriptive and bivariate analyses was performed.

Results: The two Local Government Area (LGA) did not differ significantly in their wealth index (p = 0.344). However, more children in the non-implementing LGA (16.1%) had low weight for age compared with 3.6% in the CIMCI implementing LGA (p = 0.000). A statistically significant difference exist in the MUAC measurement of children 12-23 months between the CIMCI implementing and non-implementing communities (p = 0.007). A higher percentage of caregivers (19.3%) introduced complementary feeding earlier than 6 months in the non-implementing area (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Using community level nutritional counseling can greatly improve nutritional status and feeding practices of under five children.

Keywords: CIMCI; MUAC; Nutritional status; complementary feeding; weight for age.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Types of Complementary Feeds
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. United Nations Children's Fund. End of decade database: global data base on malnutrition; Website: http://www.childinfo.org/eddb/malnutrition/database2.htm.2002 accessed in 10/11/2012.
    1. Pollitt E. Stunting and delayed motor development in rural West Java. Amer J of Human Biol. 1994;6:627–635. - PubMed
    1. Martorell R, Rivera J A, Kaplowitz H, Pollit E. Long-term consequences of growth retardation during early childhood. In: Hernandez M, Argente J, editors. Human growth: basic and clinical aspects. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science Publishers; 1992. pp. 143–149.
    1. A Life free from hunger: Tackling child malnutrition; London Save the Children Fund; 2012. Available from: http://www.savethechildren.org accessed on 10/11/ 2012.
    1. Lutter CK, Daelmans BM, de Onis M, Kothari MT, et al. Under nutrition, poor feeding practices and low coverage of key nutrition interventions. Pediatrics. 2011 Dec;128(6):1418–27. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms