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The impact of a nutrition education programme on the anthropometric nutritional status of low-income children in South Africa

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2007

CM Walsh ,
A Dannhauser  and
G Joubert
CM Walsh*
Affiliation:
School of Tourism, Hospitality and Sport, Technikon Free State, Private Bag X20539, Bloemfontein 9300, South Africa
A Dannhauser
Affiliation:
Department of Human Nutrition, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
G Joubert
Affiliation:
Department of Biostatistics, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
*
*Corresponding author: Email cwalsh@tofs.ac.za
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Abstract

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Objective:

The study determined the impact of a community-based nutrition education programme, using trained community nutrition advisors, on the anthropometric nutritional status of mixed-race children aged between 2 and 5 years.

Design and setting:

The programme was implemented over two years in four study areas in the Free State and Northern Cape Provinces. Two control areas were included to differentiate between the effect of the education programme and a food aid programme that were implemented simultaneously. Weight-for-age, height-for-age and weight-for-height were summarised using standard deviations from the NCHS reference median. For each of the indicators, the difference in the percentage of children below minus two standard deviations from the reference NCHS median in the initial and follow-up surveys was determined.

Subjects:

Initially 536 children were measured and, after two years of intervention, 815.

Results:

Weight-for-age improved in all areas, but only significantly in boys and girls in the urban study area, and in boys in one rural study area. No significant improvement in height-for-age occurred in any area. Weight-for-height improved significantly in the urban study area.

Conclusion:

The education programme in combination with food aid succeeded in improving the weight status of children, but was unable to facilitate catch-up growth in stunted children after two years of intervention.

Keywords

AnthropometryIntegrated nutrition educationprogramme
Type
Research Article
Information
Public Health Nutrition , Volume 5 , Issue 1 , February 2002 , pp. 3 - 9
Copyright
Copyright © CABI Publishing 2002

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