Dietary Intake of Pupils, 8-14 Years in Bungoma County, Kenya

Abstract

Good nutrition is crucial for forming proper eating habits to provide the much needed nutrients for growth and development. Moreover, at school age, children develop their nutrition practices which are important in relieving the occurrence of diet related chronic diseases later in life. Globally, malnutrition among school aged children is a public health concern with more than two hundred million children stunted. The objective of this study was to establish the dietary intake of pupils, 8-14 years in Bungoma County, Kenya. The study adopted a descriptive, cross-sectional study design. Multi-stage random sampling was used to determine the schools and pupils, 8-14 years, included in the study. The study population was pupils attending public primary schools in Bungoma County and a total of four hundred pupils were enrolled for the study. Data collection tools used included questionnaires for quantitative data collection. Data was collected on 24 hour dietary recall and food frequency questionnaire. Data collected was analyzed using and the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 to be able to categorize the pupils appropriately. Data analyzed was presented using tables, pie charts and bar graphs. The study found out that majority of the pupils had low dietary diversity (n=270, 67.50%) and had inadequate dietary intake (n=217, 54.3%). The mean kilocalorie consumption was 2217.63 kilocalories. Adequate dietary intake is necessary for pupils to realize their full potential in life. Nutrition education on dietary intakes should begin at home and also be integrated in the pupils' school curriculum.