Effect of a Child-Owned Poultry Intervention Providing Eggs on Nutrition Status and Motor Skills of Young Children in Southern Ethiopia: A Cluster Randomized and Controlled Community Trial

Abstract

Eggs are highly nutritious foods, yet intake by children in Ethiopia is low. We hypothesized that a nutrition-sensitive poultry intervention improves nutritional status of children 6-18 months using a 6-month cluster randomized controlled community trial. Intervention group (IG) children received a gift of two egg-laying hens in a ceremony where children's ownership of the chickens was declared by community leaders. Parents promised to add more hens and feed the owner-child one-egg-a-day. Trained community workers reinforced egg feeding, environmental sanitation and poultry husbandry. Control group (CG) mothers received usual nutrition education on child feeding. At baseline 29.6% of children were stunted, 19.4% underweight and 8.6% wasted. Egg consumption significantly increased only in IG, at 6 months. The intervention increased weight-for-age and weight-for-height z-scores by 0.38 (95% CI = 0.13-0.63) and 0.43 (95% CI = 0.21-0.64), respectively. Binary logit model indicated IG children were 54% (Odds ratio [OR] = 0.46; 95% CI = 0.26-0.84) and 42% (OR = 0.58; 95% CI = 0.37-0.91) less likely to be underweight and stunted, respectively, compared to CG. IG children attained the milestone of running (p = 0.022; AHR = 1.43; 95% CI = 1.05-1.95), kicking a ball (p = 0.027; AHR = 1.39; 95% CI = 1.04-1.87) and throwing a ball (p = 0.045; AHR = 1.37; 95% CI = 1.01-1.86) earlier than CG. This nutrition-sensitive child-owned poultry approach should be implemented where animal-source food intake is low.

Keywords: chicken; egg; gross motor skill; growth; one egg a day; poultry; stunting; underweight; wasting.

Figure 1

Trend of length-for-age (LAZ), weight-for-age (WAZ) and weight-for-height (WHZ) Z-scores from baseline to end line over 6 months. IG = intervention group; CG = control group.

Figure 2

Trend in proportion of children in each nutritional status group from baseline to end line, over 6 months. IG = Intervention group; CG = control group.

Figure 3

Kaplan–Meier curves of running (A) and kicking a ball (B) motor skills attainment among normal weight children at baseline in intervention and control.